


Camp Buddy: Sleepsong

by TiraminaFW



Category: Camp Buddy (Visual Novel)
Genre: Also known as: Keitaro's Route, Cuz screw having to choose just one, Drama & Romance, Explicit Sexual Content, M/M, Multi, Mutual Pining, Polyamory, Self-Discovery, The route where Keitaro picks them all up and runs away flipping everyone else off
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:42:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 185,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24222982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TiraminaFW/pseuds/TiraminaFW
Summary: On a quiet, summer's day, Keitaro receives an invitation from his closest friend Hiro to a place called, Camp Buddy.  Wanting to make great memories to last his lifetime, he accepts the offer to attend the camp.  What Keitaro doesn't expect, is for this place to open up a vault deep within his heart; one he didn't even know was there.  When five unique people all come into his life at the same time, and he feels a burning passion and drive towards each of them.  This is the Camp Buddy hidden route, Keitaro's route.  One never meant to be seen.  One never thought to be taken.  But with Keitaro's love ever-growing, and these desperate cries for help, Keitaro will walk down a path he never thought he'd take. Out of all the outcomes, this is one... he least expected.
Relationships: Hiro Akiba/Keitaro Nagame, Hunter Springfield/Keitaro Nagame, Keitaro Nagame/Natsumi Hamasaki, Keitaro Nagame/Taiga Akatora, Keitaro Nagame/Yoichi Yukimura
Comments: 52
Kudos: 163





	1. Prologue: Sleepsong

The moon was at its peak. It’s gentle, loving rays cascaded down to the gently flowing river below. The water sparkled and danced, following the flow of the Earth peacefully. The roars of the waterfall echoed through the quiet wood, the mist floating into the air. 

Behind the fall, a deep cave laid to hide those from the prying eyes of the world. A hot spring steamed and bubbled, sending warm, wet mist into the air. The rocks around the pond sparkled like diamonds, illuminating the dim cave as the moon shined through the fall. 

Within the pond, a single figure gently cleansed his body. Soft hands rolled over firm arms and a lean torso, wiping away the muck and grime of the day. As the hands coarsed through thick, brunette locks, a gentle voice rose up in song. 

_ Lay down your head… and I’ll sing you a lullaby… _

_ Back to the years of loo-li-lai-lay… _

_ And I’ll sing you to sleep, and I’ll sing you tomorrow… _

_ Bless you, with love, for the road that you go... _

Emerald green eyes fluttered open, gazing at the crystal clear water below. The man lowered deeper into the pond, a blissful sigh escaping from plush lips as the warmth sent shivers up his spine. Water droplets rolled down the curves of his back and chest, dipping through defined muscles before sinking back into the steaming water. 

The man reached his hands up, bringing them down his neck and collarbone, dipping his head back to welcome the warm steam. Once more, petal lips parted, and he sang on. 

_ May you sail fair, to the far fields of fortune… _

_ With diamonds and pearls, at your head and your feet… _

_ And may you need never, to banish, misfortune… _

_ May you find kindness, in all that you meet…  _

The man let out a heavy sigh, slowly rising out of the water. A shiver rolled over his body as he left the comfort of the warm spring and walked into the cool, night air. He carefully stepped out of the pond, continuing his song as he walked through the cave. 

_ May there always be angels, to watch over you… _

_ To guide you each step of the way… _

_ To guard you, and keep you… safe from all harm… _

_ Loo-li-loo-li-lai-lay... _

The man walked in-between two large rocks, shielding himself away from any potential onlookers, should someone have found him. He slid down to the cold rocky floor, lifting up a thin, silky sheet, wrapping it around his waist. He secured it with a small knot and rose back up to his feet, stretching out his now loose and tender body. As he stepped back out near the spring, a warm smile crawled across his face as he remembered the moments that took place in this spring. 

The warmth. The love. The skinship. From tearful words to tender kisses, to sweet lovemaking. Everything here brought back nothing but beautiful, pleasant memories. The man’s eyes began to water as he remembered the amazing moments he shared here and continued his song. 

_ May you bring love, and may you bring happiness… _

_ Be loved in return, to the end of your days… _

_ Now fall off to sleep, I’m not meaning to keep you… _

_ I’ll just sit for a while, and sing loo-li-lai-lay... _

The man walked away from the pond, the roaring of the falls growing louder and louder. He only walked for a few steps, before the emotions that accompanied his memories brought him to his knees. Tears of joy rolled down his cheeks as he remembered the confession that took place here. And as if the spirits of this spring heard him, footsteps began to sound through the cave. 

The man turned his head, and his smile only widened. He reached out his arms to welcome the warm embrace of his lovers, for they had come seeking his touch. They knew the man would get lost in his thoughts, and get overwhelmed with his emotions should he come here alone. They knew him well. One lover gently scooped him up into his arms, pulling him close to the warmth of his chest. 

The man sighed in content, burying his face into the warmth of his lovers. They all reached out to hold his hand, wanting him to know that they were there, and despite what could’ve occurred, they were here. The man let more tears fall, and he tipped his head back to finish his song. 

_ May there always be angels, to watch over you… _

_ To guide you each step of the way… _

_ To guard you, and keep you, safe from all harm… _

_ Loo-li-loo-li-lai-lay… _

The man was suddenly overwhelmed with kisses, as his lovers settled down on the rocky floor, curling around him like a protective shield. As a warm blush spread across his face, the man sang the last line of his song, before succumbing fully to the touch of his lovers.

_ Loo-li-loo-li-lai-lay… _


	2. Day 1: Welcome to Camp Buddy

_ Memories… _

_ How does one preserve and treasure them? _

_ They can be incredibly valuable, as some of us may want to remember certain moments of our lives… _

_ It could be something good that made you smile. Or something bad, that taught you a lesson… _

_ Unfortunately, some of these wonderful moments can be forgotten.  _

_ Most things don't last forever. They are meant to change, and fade away through time… _

_...Memories are one of them… _

_ What can I do to make mine last forever? _

_ Is it even possible?  _

_ Is this… a greedy request?  _

_ Some people say that all good things come to end, eventually.  _

_ I refuse to accept that! _

_ That’s why I’ll take this chance to find a way, some way, to keep all of my greatest memories! _

“LAST STOP! CAMP BUDDY!”

Keitaro’s head shot up at the sound of the conductor's voice. Pulled from his thoughts suddenly, he scrambled out of his seat and pulled his bag up and over his shoulder. He moved up the empty bus, dropping a bill in the driver’s tip jar and nodding a small ‘thank you’ before stepping off. 

The bus door closed behind him, and the engine reved as the vehicle drove off down the street, before disappearing around the corner. Keitaro sighed, looked to his sides to see if there was anyone else potentially headed in the same direction as he was. 

No such luck. 

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the folded up brochure and flipped it over, looking at the small map for guidance. Using his spare hand to follow the printed street with his finger, he made sure his bag was flush to his back before taking a step forward, walking off the paved sidewalk and onto the dirt path. 

The small sign with the arrow that pointed to his destination was old and worn, as if left to rot over the previous years. Seeing something like that set a small knot in his stomach, but he pushed it down and pressed on. 

Taking some time to admire the scenery, Keitaro smiled as the trees slowly became thicker and thicker around him, the sounds of the city growing quieter. 

Suddenly, he saw a break in the path ahead of him. He squinted his eyes as the light suddenly erupted around him when he entered a large clearing. Looking up with a hand to shield his eyes, he held up his brochure. 

“Let’s see… it should be right around… here!”

He threw the brochure down and stuffed it back into his pocket as the large, wooden sign came into view. Worn with age, but vibrant in color, a smile broke onto his face as excitement flooded his chest. 

“Ah, Camp Buddy!”

Keitaro chirped with glee as he looked over the looming arch inviting him into the grounds ahead. He couldn’t help but bounce on his toes a little, his heart picking up in pace as he looked over his brochure once more. 

“It looks so amazing! This  _ has _ to be the place Hiro was telling me about!” He exclaimed to himself, holding up the brochure to the sign as if to make sure it matched. After nodding in confirmation, he noticed the time on a clock behind the arch. 

Gritting his teeth, he pulled out his small flip phone and opened it, seeing the time up close. 09:47. He was late,  _ very  _ late. 

“I hope I didn’t miss anything important… I should’ve arrived about an hour ago… why didn’t my alarm clock go off I was SURE I set it!” Keitaro fussed at himself, kicking the dirt gently. 

“I’ll definitely get a scolding from Hiro if he finds out I overslept again…”

Keitaro sighed heavily, folding the brochure up one final time. He moved his bag to his chest as he stored it away, his ears perked as he listened for any commotion around him. This was a summer camp, right? It was… oddly silent. 

“...It’s pretty quiet here, for some reason. Shouldn’t summer camps be more uhh… lively and fun?” Keitaro asked himself, the nervousness flooding back. He bit his lip gently, moving his bag back to his back. As he fiddled with the camera around his neck gently, he voiced his concerns to himself, wanting to get them out before they caused him to have second thoughts. 

“To be honest… I’m still kinda nervous, I’m not usually the kind of person who attends summer camps,” He whispered, his eyes falling to his camera. When he held it up, looking through the lens, a smile crept onto his face. This was a new place! A new place to make friends, to take pictures, and to make great memories to last his lifetime. He dropped his camera back on his chest and gave his cheeks a few slaps. 

“But, this is going to be a new experience for me! I guess it’s time to take a picture!” 

Shaking the worry and doubt from his mind, he lifted his camera up and held it to his face, focusing on the wooden arch in front of him. Sticking his tongue out slightly in concentration, he waited until the lens was completely in focus before clicking the button. 

“Aaaaand… THERE!” 

The clicking sound filled his ears, and he quickly lowered his camera to watch it print out his first photo of his summer. He pulled it out and fanned it gently, waiting impatiently for the image to appear. When he saw the color burst to life on the film, he held it up and smiled. 

“Wow! Such a nice shot! Another great picture for my album!” 

Keitaro excitedly dropped his back on the ground and unzipped it, pulling out a small binder. He flipped through it hurriedly until he saw an empty slot, filing the picture away. Looking to the side at the previous pictures he took, glee filled him as he thought of showing Hiro all of his pictures. 

“It’s been awhile since I last met up with Hiro. At least four months! I’m sure he’d like to see all the photos I’ve taken since the start of summer vacation! I know how much he loves looking at my photograph album!” 

The thought of seeing his oldest friend made his heart pound in his chest, that warm feeling washing over his chest. He looked around him wildly as if expecting to see him, but remembered that he was the only one there. Putting his album back, Keitaro scratched his cheek in confusion and worry, looking back down at his phone clock. 

“Speaking of Hiro… where is he? He’s not usually late like me-”

“KEITAROOOOOO!”

A loud, quirky voice screamed his name, cutting his sentence short. Keitaro looked up to see none other than his best and oldest friend Hiro racing towards him, waving his arm excitedly. His vibrant, orange hair tossed as he ran, and he wore a bright smile on his face. 

“I’m so glad you made it!” He cried, opening his arms up. Keitaro took half a step back and braced himself for the giant hug he was about to get. He opened up his arms allowing Hiro to dive into them. Keitaro sputtered as the breath was knocked out of him, Hiro’s arms locking around his neck tightly. 

“H-Hiro! There you are!” Keitaro yelped, wrapping his arms around Hiro’s torso to return the eager hug. 

Hiro squeezed Keitaro even tighter, burying his face into his shoulder, “What took you so long!? I was looking for you! For a second I thought you already ditched me!”

Keitaro pulled back offendly, shaking his head wildly at the sudden accusation. 

“What!? No, I wouldn’t do something like that to you!” He cried, hoping that Hiro wasn’t angry at him for being so late. But the tangerine-eyed boy just smiled goofily, chuckling as he released Keitaro from his bear hug. 

“Hehehe, I’m just kidding Keitaro, relax!” Hiro patted Keitaro’s chest a few times, assuring him that no grudge was held. Keitaro released a breath of relief he didn’t know he was holding, his hand coming to his chest. 

Hiro was still as goofy and even a bit mischievous as ever. But Keitaro had missed that about him. Looked up at his friend, he noticed he was wearing his favorite Superstar shirt and gaming buttons attached to his backpack. For a moment, he looked up at Hiro’s face to see a small hairpin pinned to the left side of his head. Wasn’t that the-

“I see you brought your camera with you!” 

Hiro’s sudden talking yanked Keitaro from his thoughts as he looked down at said camera.

“That is  _ so _ you!” Hiro exclaimed, clasping his hands behind him as he bounced on his feet. Keitaro nodded excitedly, the earlier thought leaving his mind as he held it up for Hiro to see. 

“Of course I did! I can’t miss this opportunity to add new photos to my collection! Look at all this nature around us! That itself is a fantastic muse!”

Hiro giggled at Keitaro’s excitement, shaking his head. Suddenly, Hiro pulled out his phone and looked at the flat screen, a cheeky grin climbing onto his face. 

“You’re pretty late though, as usual. I bet you overslept again~!” Hiro lowered his phone and cocked a teasing brow at Keitaro. The brunette in question puffed out his cheeks. 

So he did notice. 

Keitaro crossed his arms in a huff, sticking his nose up, “HEY! In MY defense, I’m absolutely,  _ one-hundred percent  _ certain that I remembered to set my alarm clock!”

Hiro let out a hearty laugh, throwing his hands behind his head. Keitaro frowned at his friend, put out that he noticed his tardiness. But then, a thought popped into his head. 

Keitaro smiled almost slyly, unfolding his arms and propping his hands on his hips. 

“Actually, I was worried you wouldn’t find this place. You’re pretty bad with directions if I remember correctly~”

Hiro’s laughter came to a halt as he puffed out his cheeks. 

“Heyyy!” Hiro let out a pouty whine as he locked eyes with Keitaro, seemingly looking for something to defend himself with. But after a pregnant pause, a blush rushed over Hiro’s face and he rubbed the back of his head embarrassingly. 

“Well… yeah you’re right…”

Keitaro laughed amusingly, and Hiro did the same. They laughed for a few moments before falling into a comfortable silence. Keitaro’s heart warmed with happiness; he didn’t realize how much he missed sharing laughter with Hiro. 

Hiro smiled, throwing his hands behind his head once more before turning his torso towards the arch. 

“Anyway, this is the Camp Buddy place I told you about! It’s one of those summer-camping-thingies. I know you like to take pictures of nature and stuff, so I figured it could be nice to spend our summer here!” He explained, twisting back and forth. 

Keitaro nodded, looking up at the arch as well, “Yeah, I actually read it in their brochure on the way here! Hold on-” He moved his bag to pull it out, smoothing out the now rather crumpled brochure. Opening it up, Keitaro cleared his throat. 

“It says… ‘Camp Buddy is a scout-themed adventure summer camp!’ They have activities like: swimming, hiking, and of course, camping!”

Hiro’s grin widened, pulling his hands into fists as if victorious, “Yeah, I knew you’d like it!”

Keitaro’s head bobbed up and down, closing the brochure and turning his attention to the grounds ahead. 

“Yeah, I’m really excited about it, this the first time I’ve done one of these camps! I’ve heard so much about them and how they open your heart and such, or at least that’s what I’ve heard,” Keitaro blushed at the cheesy words that came out of his mouth, but continued, “Thank you so much for bringing me here Hiro.”

Hiro’s smile softened, as if loving in a way, and his cheeks were tinted pink. 

“It’s my pleasure! If there’s anyone I’d want to spend my summer with, it would be  _ you _ Keitaro…” 

Hiro brought his hands to his chest, fiddling his thumbs together nervously. Keitaro took notice of this action, and his eyebrows furrowed in concern. Was he okay? He seemed embarrassed by his last statement. But before Keitaro could question him about it, Hiro sucked in a breath and reached out to grab Keitaro by the hand. 

“Come on, let’s go inside!” 

Keitaro smiled, allowing Hiro to lead him under the arch and into the camp at last. The two boys looked in awe at the sheer size of the camp, both of them expecting it to be much smaller than it actually was. The center of the grounds was at least a quarter size of a football field, and over a dozen wooden buildings were structured around the circular plaza. The grounds were well kept and organized, and it looked like the stone pathways had been recently cleaned. 

The worry Keitaro had about the camp’s state had been completely obliterated as he spun around to look at everything, wishing he had multiple sets of eyes. 

“Woah there Keitaro, you’re gonna get dizzy with all that spinning you're doing,” Hiro gently tugged on Keitaro’s hand, preventing him from bumping into a nearby sign that Keitaro had missed. 

The green-eyed boy chuckled, turning his gaze up and towards what appeared to be the main building. 

“Wow! This place is much bigger than I thought it would be! Those cabins look so comfy, and I can see the mountains and a lake from here too!” He began pointing at everything he saw, feeling like an excited elementary schooler. Hiro laughed, releasing Keitaro’s hand so that he could walk forward to look at what he was pointing at. 

“Yeah, you’re right! I’m getting really pumped up to see the activities we’re gonna be doing here!” Hiro exclaimed. Keitaro nodded in agreement, spinning on his heel to face his friend. 

“Me too! I wonder how many activities they do a day? Do you think they have different levels of activities to accommodate new members or-”

“Attention!”

The two boys jumped in surprise and spun around when a third voice called out to them. They both looked up to see a tall man in uniform approaching them with a smile on his face. What seemed to be a cowboy hat was tied around his neck, and he wore large, brown boots. Keitaro immediately felt that nervousness return as a slight shyness washed over. 

“Ummm…” 

Still shocked at his sudden appearance, Keitaro was at a loss for words. The man looked so official! But Hiro quickly jumped in as if sensing his friend's discomfort, and starting a conversation for them. 

“Heya mister!” Hiro waved his hand at the stranger, placing his other on Keitaro’s shoulder reassuringly. The man held up a hand and waved back, returning Hiro’s eager greeting. 

“Hello there, welcome to Camp Buddy! What can I do for you boys?” He asked, his hand going down to his side. Keitaro felt the nervousness melt away at the man’s rather cheerful approach, it reminded him of Hiro in a way. 

“We’re here to join Camp Buddy sir! We just got here a few minutes ago,” Hiro explained, crossing his arms proudly. 

The man furrowed his brows for a moment, seemingly racking his brain around to interpret what Hiro meant. 

“Join? OH! You two must be Mr. Nagame and Mr. Akiba, right?” The man bopped his hands together in realization, the smile returning to his face even brighter than before. Hiro bobbed his head up and down in confirmation, and Keitaro gave a gentle nod. 

“Yep, that’s us!” Hiro threw his arms out wildly, Keitaro ducking down to avoid getting hit in the face. 

The man gave a hearty laugh, seemingly amused by Hiro’s enthusiasm. He nodded and spoke on, “I was expecting you two! My name is Yoshinori Nagira. I’m the current head-scoutmaster of Camp Buddy! It’s a pleasure to meet you two!”

The man, now Yoshi, held out a hand in greeting. Keitaro, now excited to get to know him better, reached out and took it, giving it a firm shake in return. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too, sir!” He chirped, flashing his brightest smile. 

Yoshi chuckled once more, shaking Hiro’s hand as well, “Wow! Such enthusiasm! I can see already that you two have the potential of becoming great scouts!”

Keitaro and Hiro looked at each other embarrassingly, flattered by Yoshi’s seemingly unwavering praise. When they had finished introducing themselves, Yoshi placed a hand on his chest, almost in a poetic sort of pose. 

“It brings a tear to my eye knowing that the youth of today still show interest in honorary activities such as these-”

Keitaro and Hiro both raised a concerned brow at Yoshi’s sudden speech. 

“-I am most proud of you two for taking the initiative to seek out in doing what’s best for our community! And, as a scoutmaster I swore to never my back on those who-”

_ “This guy is a monologuer!”  _ Hiro whispered in Keitaro’s ear as Yoshi dragged on. The brunette gently slapped Hiro’s chest, giving him a firm stare that spoke ‘don’t be rude’. Hiro snickered at Keitaro’s frustration, and chose to raise his hand so as to not further upset his friend. 

“Um, s-sir…?” 

Yoshi suddenly stopped talking. He looked down at himself as if realizing he had gotten off topic, and cleared his throat embarrassingly.

“Ehem… ahh, yes. Forgive me for going off topic so quickly, it’s a habit of mine…” He explained, looking off to the side. Keitaro shook his head hurriedly, his hair hitting his face with each twist. 

“No, no! Don’t apologize sir, it’s quite alright! You’re just really happy from the looks of it! I can get lost in my thoughts when I’m happy as well!” Keitaro clapped his hands together, pointing down at his camera for context. 

Yoshi smiled fondly at Keitaro, nodding in thanks before clearing his throat once more, “Well, why don’t you two have a look around the camp while I prepare your accommodations and lodging? I’ll have my  _ best _ scout guide you through the camp and introduce you to the other campers!”

Keitaro and Hiro nodded vigorously, both eager to see the whole of the grounds and what each building intaled. Yoshi chuckled at their eager bounces, and turned his head towards one of the many wooden buildings. 

“NATSUMI!”

Hiro and Keitaro turned to look at the building as well, watching as the door to what appeared to be an office fly open. Another scout stepped out, hurrying down the stairs and towards them with confidence. 

Keitaro felt his heart pound in his chest as he saw this scout. He was rather tall, with well-kept navy blue hair and ocean blue eyes. A sash with badges sewn onto every corner was wrapped around his torso, adding a personal flair to his uniform. 

The scout walked over to them, before stopping a few feet away from Yoshi, holding his hand up in salute. 

“Natsumi, reporting for duty!” 

The scout, or Natsumi, had a rather thick accent, Keitaro noticed. He must have been from the northern islands, maybe Hokkaido from the sounds of his voice, but that was just a guess. Keitaro looked over at Hiro to see him ogling the man’s sash, clearly curious about what each badge meant. 

Keitaro had no idea why seeing this new person was making him feel all warm inside like Hiro did, but he pushed that concern down and away when Yoshi addressed Natsumi with instructions. 

“May you please attend to our new campers and give them a tour of Camp Buddy while I prepare their cabin and uniforms?” 

Natsumi nodded sternly, flashing a bright smile at the request, “It would be my pleasure, sir!” 

Hiro let out a low whistle at Natsumi’s enthusiasm at being given a task, looking over at Keitaro with confusion. Keitaro shook his head, silently telling him not to question him before hearing Yoshi speak up once more.

“I’ll be taking my leave then! If you need me, I’ll be in my office. Take care of them Natsumi!” Yoshi gave a small wave to Keitaro and Hiro before turning and walked towards the building that Natsumi came out of. Natsumi gave one more salute. 

“Roger that, sir!”

As Yoshi disappeared into the office, Natsumi sighed and turned towards Keitaro and Hiro. He dusted off his shoulder, and gave the two a deep bow. 

“Greetings!” 

Hiro let out an undignified snort, and burst into laughter. Keitaro spun around to question why Hiro was laughing at him, but Hiro shook his head and waved his hand for Natsumi to straighten himself out. 

“Hahaha, no need to be so formal, dude! Just a simple ‘hi’ is cool!” Hiro chirped, placing his hands on his hips. Natsumi immediately straightened himself out, his face one of shock at their casualness. Natsumi nodded his head, “Oh, I apologize. It’s just that I always treat people with utmost respect! Everyone deserves my best off the bat!”

Keitaro smiled, shaking his head, “It’s alright! You can greet us anyway you like to!”

Natsumi smiled fondly, giving another bow, this time towards Keitaro specifically. The green-eyes boy felt a light blush crawl over his cheeks as Natsumi rose up, a smile on his face. 

“I’m afraid we haven’t introduced ourselves properly. My name is Hamasaki Natsumi! You can just call me Natsumi!”

Hiro held out a hand, Natsumi reaching back to shake it, “I’m Hiro! And this is my best friend, Keitaro!” 

Natsumi bowed his head, holding his hand out for Keitaro. Keitaro smiled, reaching out to shake his hand in return. His hand was gentle, yet slightly coarse from work. 

“Scoutmaster Yoshi has put me in charge of some of the tasks here!” He exclaimed, puffing his chest out almost proudly at the statement. 

Keitaro smiled brightly, nodding his head and giving a small bow to seemingly finalize the introduction, “Well, it's very nice to meet you!” 

Hiro looked over at Keitaro, and quickly copied his action, not wanting to seem rude in front of his friend. Natsumi in return, flashed a bright smile and bowed as well. 

“It’s my pleasure to meet you both as well!”

When they all rose back up, Natsumi clapped his hands together a few times. 

“Well then, down to business! Scoutmaster Yoshi has been expecting you this morning. While Scoutmaster Yoshi may be busy more often than not, if there’s anything you two need, you can always approach me! I’ll make sure to contribute towards your memorable experiences here at Camp Buddy!” Natsumi gave a short salute, standing proudly at his proclamation. 

Hiro let out a short chuckle, returning the salute playfully, “Thanks dude! Hey, is there any place where we can get some grub-” Hiro’s stomach growled loudly, “-I’m starving!” 

Keitaro’s face flushed a dark red in embarrassment. Hiro was always one to speak whatever was on his mind, even seeming demandy at times. He reached out and grabbed Hiro’s arm, “H-Hiro-!”

Natsumi laughed heartily at the display before him, waving his hand at Keitaro, “Hahaha, it’s alright! Scoutmaster Yoshi ordered me to give you a tour around the campsite anyway, so we can start with the mess hall. I’m sure Hiro can get something nice from there!”

Hiro pumped both his fists into the air, letting out a loud, excited cry, “WOOHOO! Now we’re talking!” 

Keitaro covered his face as Hiro did a little victory bounce, hoping Natsumi didn’t see Hiro as demanding in any way. But Hiro grabbed Keitaro’s arm and linked it with his, pulling him towards Natsumi as he turned around. 

“Just follow me!” 

The tall bluenette spun on his heel and marched forward with Hiro and Keitaro in tow. Hiro whispered a few reassuring words to Keitaro, trying to calm him down before they got there. He decided to have Keitaro focus on the surroundings as they walked through the campsite. 

Keitaro admired the buildings as they made their way to the mess hall, the rustic aesthetic of the whole camp really tickling his photography desires. While he wanted to start taking pictures immediately, he restrained himself, not wanting to seem rude in any way.

Natsumi made a quick turn to the left, and a new building came into view. This one was much larger than the rest, even bigger than the Scoutmaster office it seemed. It had large double doors, and windows all around the sides. Keitaro saw other scouts moving from outside the glass, some carrying trays with food, and others seemingly just running.

Natsumi walked up the steps of the building, pulling one of the doors open and gesturing the two inside. 

Keitaro spoke a quick thank you as they walked in, Hiro releasing his arm to run forward. The smell of food immediately overwhelmed them both, causing Hiro to start drooling on the spot. 

“Welcome to the mess hall!” Natsumi cheered, swinging his arm out as if displaying the building. 

Keitaro’s focus darted around the room wildly. Each table was occupied by a few campers eating their lunches.

Hiro took a deep breath in, licking his lips hungrily as the smell of the food overwhelmed him.

“Mmmmmm, it smells so good in here!” He hummed happily, his palms coming to his cheeks in content.

Keitaro giggled. , and took another look around the room, “Yeah, it’s a bit crowded too! So this is where all the other campers were!”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “Yes! Most of the campers send their free time in here. And this is where we’ll have all of our daily meals as well! Our chef serves only the healthiest food, packed with energy and nutrition!” 

It was like he had rehearsed this prior. The sound of only healthy food made Hiro pout a little, giving the impression that there’d be no junk food to be found. 

But that worry would soon be quelled. 

“Oh! You guys should try out the pizza here! It’s delicious! Drizzled with bacon and lots of cheese!” Natsumi clapped his hands together, his grin never wavering. 

Keitaro couldn’t help but sigh at the sound of that, and Hiro let out a sly laugh. 

“Pfft! So much for nutrition…” He snickered. Keitaro bit his lip and gave Hiro a gentle smack on the arm, “Hey Hiro! Shhh!” 

Hiro stuck out his tongue playfully, leaning into Keitaro’s side, “Oopsie!” 

Keitaro let out an exasperated sigh, a smile crawling on his face as Hiro swayed back and forth with him in tow. It made him wonder if Hiro thought about his words before he actually said them. Keitaro looked up at Natsumi, hoping the scout didn’t seem offended in any way. 

But the boy in question only smiled, offering out his hand to Keitaro with tinted cheeks. 

“Come on, let’s go get som-”

“ _ I TOLD I WANT IT, SO JUST GIVE IT TO ME!!” _

Keitaro jumped in fright at the sound of a loud, booming voice. It was gruff and aggressive, spitting angry words at something unknown. 

“Huh?!” Keitaro whirled around, looking for the source of the voice. Hiro did so as well, then suddenly pointed forward towards the counter stocked with food. 

“There’s a commotion over there!” 

Keitaro followed Hiro’s finger to see the source of the threat. 

It was another scout, but unlike Natsumi, this one didn’t have a friendly vibe. He was shorter, but much stockier and muscular. He had wild purple hair and sharp fuschia eyes that almost glowed with power. What frightened Keitaro the most was that he had another scout strung up by the collar of his shirt, one much smaller than him. 

The scout with the angry voice had his lips curled back in a snarl, almost in an animalistic way. 

“T-This is mine…”

The scout that was dangling from his arm weakly shot back. Keitaro saw he was holding something in his arm almost protectively. It appeared to be a box with food in it. 

“Do I look like I frikkin’ care!?” The angry scout spat back, his free hand clenching into a fist. 

“C-Can you please just get y-your own?” The small scout still defended himself, giving the other a suggestion that would make him leave. However, it only seemed to anger the large scout further. 

“Oh? Is that so?  _ You asked for it!” _

Before the large scout could raise his fist, the smaller scout was able to squirm out of his grasp, slightly tearing his uniform. 

Natsumi let out a gasp, then a disappointed sigh. 

“Ugh… not again… and why NOW of all times!?” 

The small scout took a few steps back, bumping into the counter behind him, “But this is the last piece from the lunch counter…”

The violet haired scout reared up, puffing his chest out in intimidation, “I told you, I already ate mine! But I’m still hungry- SO GIVE ME YOURS!”

“G-GO AWAY!!” The small scout finally snapped, spitting out a weak threat before ducking under the counter and sprinting for the door. The large scout attempted to grab him, but the other scout’s small stature proved him to be faster. 

When he missed, he let out an aggravated scream. 

“GRAAAGHH! YOU’RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!!!”

The scout broke into a run, beginning to chase the other scout out the door. 

Hiro spoke up in panic, finally finding his voice and turning towards Natsumi. 

“H-Hey, he’s going after that guy! Sh-Shouldn’t we do something!?”

Natsumi flared his nostrils, standing up straight. His face was now set into a stern glare, and gave Hiro and Keitaro a reassuringly nod. 

“Don’t worry I’ll handle this-” He sucked in a breath, “-YOICHI!!!”

Keitaro reeled back at Natsumi’s volume. He went from sounding sweet and friendly to stern and commanding. It was loud enough to cause the large scout to stop and turn around, reacting to what Keitaro assumed to be his name.

The violet-haired scout huffed, stomping over towards them. 

Keitaro took a few steps back in fear, and Hiro stepped in front of him protectively. When he stopped a few feet in front of them, he turned to Natsumi. 

“What.”

“What did I tell you about manners!?” Natsumi wasted no time and started scolding him, crossing his arms in a huff. 

Yoichi rolled his eyes, crossing his arms defiantly, “Pssh! Manners-shmanners! Who are you? My mom!?”

Natsumi sucked in a breath, clearly trying to keep his cool. He took a deep breath, and gestured to Keitaro and Hiro. 

“We have new members today and the first thing you show them is your rotten attitude?” 

Keitaro jumped when Yoichi’s fuschia eyes shot towards him, a look of slight disbelief on his face, “New members?”

“Yes, and they are right beside me! You should  _ at least _ try to give them a good first impression!”

However, Yoichi quickly looked away and rolled his eyes, “Tch! Who needs first impressions? Shouldn't they know by now that this camp sucks!? I mean look at it-”

“HEY! Don’t go there!” Natsumi quickly cut him off, pointing a finger at the other accusingly. 

“This is the reason why some scouts quit the camp! You’re always scaring them away!”

Keitaro and Hiro both shared nervous glances, silently contemplating whether they should interject or not. They wanted to stop the argument before it got too heated, but the appearance of the new scout was intimidating. 

Hiro ended up saying nothing, just staringly firmly at this ‘Yoichi’. 

Keitaro decided to break the ice, and shakingly spoke up, “Umm…”

Natsumi’s harsh demeanor immediately crumbled. He turned to Keitaro fearfully, clapping his hands together in apology. 

“A-Ah! I’m really sorry about that, that wasn’t a very mature thing for me to do!” He gave them a deep bow, quickly turning to the violet scout. 

“Just introduce yourself to them, Yoichi!” 

And, to their surprise, he listened. 

“Hmph! Fine!”

He threw his hands up and clasped them together mockingly, “Hi. My name is Yoichi Yukimura, blah, blah, blah…”

Natusmi sighed in defeat, coming to the realization that he wasn’t going to improve his behavior any time soon. 

“Let me apologize on his behalf for such a terrible attitude. Yoichi here is quite hard-headed… most of the time…”

Hiro narrowed his arms, gripping Keitaro’s arm tighter. Keitaro placed a hand on his in return, patting it as Natsumi turned back to Yoichi, smiling weakly. 

“A-Anyway, I’d like you to meet our new camp buddies! This is Hiro.”

Hiro sucked in a breath, stepping forward a little bit awkwardly. 

“Umm…. hello?” 

Yoichi said nothing, but stared firmly at him. Hiro’s eyes darted around, silently praying for someone to break the awkward silence. 

However, it didn’t go like he wanted. 

“He looks dumb.”

Hiro let go of Keitaro and reared up, his face twisting into one of anger at the insult, “WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME!?”

Keitaro grabbed his shoulders before he could step further, and Natsumi spun around to deal with Yoichi. 

“YOICHI!!! Stop that!” 

Without any hesitation, Natsumi pulled back his arm and swung his hand across the back of Yoichi’s head. The scout grabbed his wounded head, shaking around as if dazed, “OW!”

Natsumi turned back to Hiro, giving him a few apologetic bows, “A-Ahh, I’m terribly sorry, Hiro!”

Hiro snarled, crossing his arms and sticking his nose up, “Hmph! He better watch his mouth!” 

Yoichi, seemingly shaking off the pain of the blow, turned and locked eyes with Keitaro. 

“Who’s the other one?”

Keitaro felt his heart pick up in pace and pound against his ribs. While he was nervous about the boy potentially hurting him, he couldn’t help but be… captivated by his eyes. They were strong and vibrant, and seemingly bore into his soul. 

“U-Umm…” Keitaro was at a loss for words. 

“His name is Keitaro.”

Natsumi spoke up for him, gesturing to Keitaro. Keitro shook his head, putting on a nervous smile as he held out his hand. 

“N-Nice to meet you, Yoichi.”

“Hmmm…” Yoichi said nothing, and hummed to himself. He then advanced on Keitaro. 

Keitaro held his breath, expecting for him to take his hand. But lost that breath when Yoichi stepped past his hand and leaned towards his face, sniffing him a few times. 

Keitaro stood rigidly, unsure of what to do. When Yoichi pulled away, he had a strange look on his face, like he was curious in a way. 

“You smell nice.”

The way he said it made Keitaro’s heart pick up in pace. He smelled nice? Yoichi stared at him for a few moments in silence, before his face fell back to one of annoyance. 

“But you look as dumb as your friend here.”

Before Keitaro could say anything, Hiro jumped forward angrily, his fists clenched and ready to pick a fight.

“HOW DARE YOU!”

Natsumi stepped in-between them, placing a hand on Hiro’s chest and turning towards Yoichi with a pleading look, “Please stop!”

Keitaro took the hint and grabbed Hiro’s shoulders, pulling him back. Hiro squirmed a bit, wanting to let loose on the scout, but Keitaro squeezed his shoulders. 

“Yoichi, why don’t you go outside and play instead?” Natsumi suggested, pointing to the door in defeat. 

Yoichi huffed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

“Well, I was going to in the first place. I was getting bored here anyway! See ya losers!” 

He threw his hand up and walked off, other campers moving out of his way hurriedly. 

Once he was out of sight, Keitaro released Hiro, patting his back. 

However, Hiro was anything but happy. He snarled at the door, swinging his arms around, “I can’t believe that guy! No WONDER this place is called a ‘mess’ hall!”

Keitaro shook his head, squeezing his shoulder, “Just ignore him for now Hiro, we don’t want to get in trouble on our first day…”

Hiro huffed, crossing his arms, “You know I can’t just stay quiet when someone says mean things about you!” 

Keitaro held up his hands and placed them on Hiro’s chest, trying to calm him still, “We’re here to have a great time. Let’s just forget about it, okay?”

Keitaro flashed a bright grin, and Hiro’s anger seemingly melted away. He let out a long sigh, and nodded slowly. 

“Hnn… alright, Keitaro. If you say so…”

Behind them, Natsumi sighed, his face falling to the floor dejectedly. Keitaro noticed the change and turned to him, holding out a hand in worry. 

“Are you okay, Natsumi?” He placed a nervous hand on Natsumi’s arm, the bluenette turning to face him in surprise. 

“Dang! You handle these kinds of people every day?” Hiro asked, moving around to Natsumi’s other side to mirror Keitaro, “Must be hard…”

Natsumi gave them a weak smile, shaking his head, “It’s alright. As long as the other campers can have fun, that’s all that matters to me!” 

Keitaro and Hiro both smiled, impressed by his enthusiasm after such an event. However, that happiness didn’t last, as Natsumi’s face fell in sadness and defeat. He looked back and forth between the two, rubbing his arm worriedly. 

“So… I’m guessing you guys are going to leave now too?”

Keitaro and Hiro’s jaws dropped. They exchanged looks of disbelief, before Keitaro violently shook his head. 

“What? Of course not!” 

“We wouldn't leave over something like that!” 

Natsumi’s eyes widened, and he seemed to glow with happiness at their quick response, “R-Really!? Here I thought Yoichi’s behavior might have caused you to reconsider joining the camp…”

Hiro shook his head, giving Natsumi a friendly pat on the back, “It’s alright dude, don’t sweat it too much!  _ One _ bad apple isn’t gonna scare us away, right Keitaro?” 

Keitaro nodded, flashing a toothy grin in agreement. 

Natsumi sighed in relief, “That’s wonderful to hear. You guys are really cool.”

The three shared a moment of comfortable silence before Natsumi clapped his hands together, his welcoming demeanor ignited once more. 

“Well then! Shall we continue the tour? We’ll check out the cabins next. And good news, you two will actually be bunking with me!”

Keitaro nodded, bouncing on his toes in excitement, “Of course!”

Natsumi’s smile brightened. He gestured the two towards the door, and they left the mess hall with haste. 

Keitaro looked around to see if Yoichi would be outside, but to no avail. He must’ve run off somewhere where he wouldn’t be found. 

Then, Keitaro began to wonder about the small scout he was picking on. Where was he? And was he doing alright? He looked so small compared to Yoichi, and he looked really frightened in the moment. Maybe he could go looking for him later…

“Keitaro?”

Keitaro jumped when he heard his name, seeing Hiro staring at him with furrowed brows, “You alright?”

Natsumi had stopped walking, turning to face Keitaro as well, “You dazed out for a moment, are you feeling okay?” 

Keitaro flushed in embarrassment, nodding his head, “Y-Yeah I am! Sorry about that, just got lost in my thoughts for a moment!” 

Natsumi nodded, turning back around and moving forward and walking up to one of the cabins. He opened the door, allowing the two to walk into the cabin before him. 

Keitaro let out a small gasp. The cabin looked so cozy! It had four large bunk beds near each corner of the room, small lights hanging on the walls near them. Off to their right was a series of lockers, some decorated with stickers. When they walked in a bit further, Keitaro saw the entrance to what appeared to be their bathroom. 

Natsumi took a few steps in front of them, and gestured around, “Welcome to our cabin! This will be our lodgings for the entire duration of the camp!”

Keitaro decided to voice his inner thoughts and clapped his hands together, “Wow! It looks so cozy!” 

Natsumi chuckled, pointing behind them at both their left and right as he explained the layout briefly. 

“We all have our own lockers for our belongings, and just over there is our bathroom. Although, we shouldn’t get used to the comfort here!” 

Keitaro and Hiro looked at him with puzzled faces, but Natsumi quickly explained when he meant, “There will be times where we’ll be camping out in the middle of the woods and have to sleep in tents! We make those trips around once a week, so be prepared!”

Keitaro’s eyes lit up in glee, jumping up and down in excitement, “Now that sounds like camping!” He grabbed Hiro’s arm and shook him gently. Hiro laughed at his friend's excitement, patting his hands to try and calm him. 

Natsumi chuckled, placing his hands on his hips. 

“Well, that’s about everything I needed to show you here in Camp Buddy for now! Though I heard from Scoutmaster Yoshi that the obstacle course is under development. We’re not allowed to go there yet…” He looked off out the window, probably in the direction of said obstacle course. 

Hiro let out a small gasped, clapping his hands together, “Ooh! And obstacle course? Now count me excited!” 

Natsumi smiled, nodding in agreement. He stretched out his arms and moved towards the door. 

“Lastly, if you have any questions about the camp, just approach me and I will assist you!”

Keitaro turned to him and gave him a deep bow, a smile of gratitude on his face, “Thank you so much for the tour, Natsumi.”

Hiro reached forward with his fist out, offering a fistbump to Natsumi. The bluenette walked up a few steps and gently tapped his fist against Hiro’s. 

“Thanks dude!”

Natsumi smiled, a gentle blush crawling across his cheeks, “It’s my pleasure! Alright then, I have to report back to the scoutmaster now. You guys make yourselves comfortable, okay? I’ll be back later!”

Keitaro nodded, giving him a small wave, “Okay Natsumi! Thanks again!”

And with that, Natsumi walked out of the cabin. 

The two stood in silence. Hiro looked over at Keitaro, pursing his lips together, “So… what do you think, Keitaro?” 

Keitaro grinned happily, plopping himself down on one of the empty beds, “I really like it here! The scoutmaster and the other scouts here are so… interesting!”

Hiro smiled weakly, his hand coming to the back of his head, “I guess you could say that… so… what do you think we should do now?”

Keitaro hummed to himself, looking around as if trying to find something. But when he made the move to stand back up again, and his ankles ached, he shook his head. 

“I’m actually kinda tired, I think I’ll just sit here and rest for a moment.”

Hiro nodded, placing his stuff down next to his, “Alrighty then. OH! I completely forgot to get some grub after all that craziness in the mess hall! It’s already past lunch time…”

Hiro threw off his bag and jumped towards the door, spinning around to face Keitaro. 

“I’ll get you something to eat too, okay?”

Keitaro smiled, “That’s really nice of you, Hiro. Thank you!”

Hiro blushed lightly, giving him a tiny bow, “Anything for you, Keitaro!”

Hiro then spun on his heel and leapt away, the cabin door swinging behind him for a few seconds. 

Keitaro let out a deep sigh, slowly laying down on the bed and stretching out his torso. He crossed his arms behind his head, staring at the bunk above him. 

_...It’s really peaceful here… I hope there’ll be plenty of fun memories here in Camp Buddy! I’ll make sure to take plenty of pictures to save every moment! I guess I have Hiro to thank for that… _

The sound a page being flipped made his ear twitch. 

Keitaro’s inner monologue was interrupted, and he sat up quickly, looking for the source of the noise. He slowly came to his feet, looking around the room nervously. He was the only one in here, right? Natsumi was at the office and Hiro was in the mess hall. Did more people share this cabin with them? 

He looked past the bed in the far left corner, and his breath was caught in his throat, “Eh? Is that…”

Low and behold, the small scout from earlier was sitting on the floor, tucked into the corner protectively. 

_ Oh, it’s that guy Yoichi was bullying before! _

Now that he was closer, Keitaro could take the time and get a good like at him. He looked forgein that's for sure. He had well-kept blonde hair, and turquoise eyes gently moved back and forth across a small book in his hands. 

_ I wonder if he’s alright… _

Keitaro felt worry build in his chest as he remembered this scout had a rather unhappy moment in the mess hall. He looked around the cabin, not remembering him coming in while he, Natsumi, and Hiro were talking earlier. 

_ Was he there the entire time? I didn’t notice him at all!  _

Keitaro’s gaze dropped to the small, green book in his hand. The boy hadn't noticed him yet, completely sucked in to his reading. 

_ He seems to be into that book he’s reading… _

And right when Keitaro was sure he could back away unnoticed, those turquoise eyes looked right at him. 

“Yes?” 

Keitaro seized up, caught completely off guard by the boy. His soft voice spoke up to him quietly, gently inquired why he was being stared at. 

Keitaro shook his head, waving his hands around, “O-Oh! I-It’s nothing… sorry for disturbing you!”

The boy looked back down at his book, his lips tightening slightly.

Keitaro bit his lip, now nervous. He decided that since he got his attention, he might as well introduce himself. 

“I-I’m Keitaro by the way.”

The boy looked up once more, those soft eyes locking with Keitaro’s. Everytime he looked at him, Keitaro felt his chest tighten on him. Like with Yoichi and Natsumi, he was lost in the gaze of this new boy. 

“Nice to meet you, Keitaro.”

A shiver ran down his spine when the boy said his name. Keitaro tried to quell the feelings running laps in his chest, and decided to see how the boy was doing after the event in the mess hall. 

“Are you alright?”

The boy rose a slim brow, his lips pursed out in confusion. He looked back down at his book, flipping to the next page, “Yes, I am. Why do you ask?” 

Keitaro rubbed his arm nervously, looking down at the floor.

“W-Well… I was there when you had an argument with Yoichi before…”

The boy hummed in understanding, flipping to another page, “I’m fine.”

It was a plain, yet firm response, causing Keitaro to take a step back nervously, “I-I see…”

He looked back up at the boy, then to the floor, the wall, the bed…

“Ummm…”

The boy said nothing, but continued to read his book in silence. 

_ This is really awkward! I should probably just leave him alone… _

Keitaro turned around, going to move back to his bed before-

“Hunter.”

Keitaro spun around, the boy’s voice catching him off guard, “Huh?”

The boy’s head was now turned up to face him, his attention solely on Keitaro, “M-My name is Hunter.” 

The boy’s eyes darted around nervously, unable to hold eye contact for too long it seemed. But, a smile crept onto Keitaro’s face. He turned to the boy fully, giving him a little bow in greeting, “Oh! It’s very nice to meet you Hunter!” 

He was definitely forgein. He hadn’t heard a name like Hunter before. But he pushed that down and instead, attempted to start a conversation. 

“You seem to love reading books-” He drew his attention to the book in Hunter’s hand, “-That looks interesting!” 

Instead of a verbal response, Hunter closed the book and slowly rose to his feet.

Keitaro felt fear trickle into his chest, had he upset him by saying something about the book? 

“E-Eh…? Why did you close it?” 

“I just finished reading a chapter.” Hunter answered him plainly, placing the book back down on his bed. 

Keitaro mentally sighed, glad it didn’t seem to be upset, “Oh, I see.”

Keitaro looked back down at the book, the colorful cover intriguing him. He loved books as well, especially fantasy, adventure ones, maybe it was one of those?

“What was it about? If you don’t mind me asking…”

Hunter’s gaze fell to the floor softly, uncertainty masking his face, “Well… just promise me you won’t laugh about it.”

Keitaro felt surprised at the desperate request, the boy clearly nervous about revealing his hobby. But, he nodded his head, “O-Of course!”

Hunter sighed deeply, his hand gently coming to his face, “It’s about a brave and loyal knight… who embarked on a journey to find a cure for his prince who has fallen ill… it’s set in a sort of-”

“-15th century England! I think I remember reading that one before!” Keitaro finished Hunter’s sentence, clapping his hands together as he remembered the book himself. It was a really good book, with fun fantasy action, settings, and a bittersweet love story. 

Hunter’s face lit up in surprise, his cheeks tinted pink, “Really? You like to read books too!?”

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah, my big sister has a ton of these kinds of books! Sometimes she’ll let me borrow some of them, but I tend to forget to give them back~” Keitaro stuck out his tongue, rubbing his head nervously. 

Hunter’s face softened, “I see… people usually think I’m weird because of my hobbies…”

When Keitaro saw his face fall in sadness, he immediately puffed out his chest and took a few steps forward, “Eh? It’s not weird at all!”

“Reading books is completely normal!” 

Hunter looked up at him with a face full of gratitude. His cheeks turned from pink to red and he clasped his hands behind his back nervously. 

“You’re one of the few who understand… it’s very nice to meet you Keitaro…”

Hunter held out a hand, and Keitaro took it gently. He shook Hunter’s hand, observing the softness of his palm. This boy was so small and frail compared to him, it made Keitaro a bit nervous about being rough on him. Like a porcelain glass figure…

Before Keitaro could take their discussion any further, the door to the cabin swung open. Hiro stepped inside, shutting it with his foot and lightly bound over to Keitaro. 

“I’m back Keitaro~ I got you some chips!”

Hiro held them out to him, the other taking them gratefully. Hiro turned his attention to Hunter, who took a half step back nervously. 

“Oh? You made a new friend?” Hiro asked, Keitaro nodding. He walked around Hiro and towards Hunter, giving the small boy a reassuring pat on the shoulder. 

“Yep! Hiro, this is Hunter. Hunter, this is my best friend, Hiro!” 

Hunter smiled nervously, giving him an awkward bow. 

“H-Hello, n-nice to meet you.”

Hiro smiled back, returning the bow with confidence, “Heya! You’re the one from the mess hall, right?”

Hunter nodded, rubbing his arm nervously, “Yes. That was me…”

Hiro gave a hum in confirmation, then turned to Keitaro. There was silence for a few moments. 

“Sooooo, whatcha guys talking about?”

Keitaro smiled, “Well, Hunter here was reading his book when I first saw him, and we were just talking about that.”

Hunter smiled, his gaze falling to the floor. 

However, Hiro’s face fell into one of disinterest, “Oh. Me and books don’t get along very well.”

Keitaro looked up at Hiro, his teeth clenched nervously. He noticed immediately a change in Hunter's demeanor. The boy had stepped back with embarrassment, his lip seemingly quivering. 

“”I find it really boring and I fall asleep the moment I flip a page…” Hiro sighed, rolling his eyes over to the wall. 

Keitaro tried to silently tell Hiro to stop talking or he’d further upset Hunter, but the damage had been done. Hunter stepped away from them, his eyes never leaving the floor. 

“I… I have to go…”

He took his book off the bed and quickly left the cabin, keeping his head low. 

Hiro raised a brow in confusion, looking back at Keitaro, “What was that about?” 

Keitaro frowned, crossing his arms with disappointment, “You just called his hobby boring!”

Hiro puffed out his cheeks, looking at the wall to try and avoid Keitaro’s ‘look of disappointment’. 

“I didn’t mean to offend him or anything.” Hiro gently defended himself, hoping Keitaro wouldn’t press. But, unfortunately, Keitaro’s endless amount of patience proved to be… well endless, when he pressed on. 

“Still, that wasn’t a nice thing to say, Hiro. You should apologize to him.”

Hiro furrowed his brows, crossing his arms right back at Keitaro, “What? Why should I apologize? I didn’t do anything wrong to him, I just stated an opinion. He just took it the wrong way!”

Keitaro’s face didn’t change. 

Hiro sighed, now feeling a  _ little _ guilty, “You’re just too kind, Keitaro…”

The boy in return, sighed, knowing that Hunter was long gone by now. He turned to the door, hoping that Hunter wasn’t  _ too _ upset at Hiro’s bluntness. 

“Aaaaaanyway!” Hiro jumped at the opportunity to change the subject, holding out the food he had gathered from the mess hall. 

“Come on, Keitaro! Let’s sit down and eat some chips, okay?” He skipped over to the bed and patted the seat next to him. 

Keitaro rose a brow, holding up the bag in his hand as he walked over, “Are we really having chips for lunch?” 

When Keitaro sat down, Hiro shook his head, revealing two plates with a few slices of pizza on them. 

“Of course not! I got pizza for us too!”

Keitaro sighed. It wasn’t the healthiest thing, but he took the plate anyway, not wanting to seem rude by questioning Hiro’s appetite. 

“Alright then. Let’s eat, then get some rest.”

Keitaro’s face finally softened, and Hiro nodded. As the two began to dig in, Keitaro’s mind began to wander towards the people he had just met. 

_...Hiro and I met some certainly interesting people… _

_ Natsumi, Yoichi, and Hunter. Three different people. Each of them is unique in their own way. Natsumi is helpful. Yoichi is loud. And Hunter is shy.  _

He smiled to himself. 

_ I can’t wait to know more about them! _

About two hours passed before Natsumi returned. Keitaro spent the time sorting through his new photos while listening to Hiro babble on about the things he’d been doing over the school year. 

The sound of a door opening caught their attention, and they turned to see Natsumi walking in with a bag clutched under his arm. 

“Hey guys, I’m back!”

Keitaro stood up from the bed, placing his album behind him and walking over to greet him, “Oh, hi Natsumi!” 

Natsumi walked over to what Keitaro assumed to be his bed, watching him place the large package on his bed. 

“I just got back from the scoutmaster’s office, and he asked me…” Natsumi opened the package, “To give you these!”

Natsumi held out two nearly identical uniforms. Keitaro gasped, reaching out to take his. 

“These are your official Camp Buddy uniforms!”

Keitaro smiled brightly, looking over the shirt. The scarf was green instead of blue like Natsumi’s, and the small patch on the left pocket had a frog on it, “Wow, it's so cool!”

Hiro nodded, lifting his up into the air, “Yeah! They look awesome! Totally diggin’ the scout look!”

Natsumi smiled, “A scout must wear it at all times, especially during activities!” 

“Oh, cool! They even have our names and some cool patches!” Hiro dropped the shorts on the bed behind him and unfolded the shirt, turning it around to get a full view. 

“Each uniform has it it's own unique appearance! They’re designed to match your personal tastes as well. Such as our favorite colors, animals, and whether you want a scarf, bandana, or tie!”

Keitaro grinned, unfolding his shirt to look over the patches. His patch had a small frog on it to go with the green of the rest of the uniform. He saw his name had been carefully embroidered into the shirt, smiling with pride. 

“Go ahead and try them on! I’ll wait here,” Natsumi waved them off to the bathroom, Hiro immediately dashing away. Keitaro nodded and followed after Hiro. When he entered the bathroom, Hiro was struggling to pull his shirt off, stumbling around blindly. 

“H-Hiro! Don’t rush yourself, you’re gonna trip!” Keitaro cried, dropping his stuff to go and grab Hiro’s arms. He heard Hiro chuckle behind the shirt, wiggling his arms around to move it up. 

Then he froze. 

“Keitaro…”

Keitaro, who was removing his own shirt, turned to him, “Yes?”

“...I’m stuck…”

The brunette snorted roughly, sputtering a bit before bursting out laughing. 

“C’mon Keitaro, stop laughing! Help me!!” Hiro cried, wiggling his torso around to emphasize his plight. Keitaro bit his lip to try and stifle his chuckles as he walked over and swiftly pulled off Hiro’s shirt. Underneath, Hiro was flushed to a tomato red color in embarrassment. He grabbed his shirt and quickly covered his face. 

“You okay?” Keitaro asked, grabbing his uniform and slipping it over his shoulders. Hiro gave him a weak nod, pulling his uniform over his head quickly. 

“Y-Yeah, thanks,” Hiro muttered, pulling on his new shorts before grabbing his shoes and bolting out of the bathroom. 

Keitaro giggled to himself, buttoning his uniform shirt slowly so as to not tear it. He picked up his tie and draped it over his shoulders, using the body-length to watch his movements. After he had set the tie, he picked up the golden, star-shaped badge and clipped it to the tie’s knot. Picking his camera back up and hanging it around his neck, he stopped for a moment to look over himself. 

He smiled happily as he did a few turns in front of the mirror, his giddiness making him bounce up and down. He slipped on his new shoes and walked out of the bathroom with his clothes under his arm. 

When he walked out, Natsumi and Hiro were casually talking to each other, and Keitaro picked up on their words. 

“I got stuck in my shirt and Keitaro had to help me, that’s why I rushed out without my shorts on… sorry you had to see that!” Hiro grinned, rubbing the back of his head. Natsumi chuckled, shaking his head. 

“Oh, don’t worry Hiro, I understand. Honestly, I’d want to get out of there too if that happened. Oh! Keitaro, you’re all dressed!” 

Keitaro jumped, the two turning to look at him. Hiro’s face immediately flushed again, and Natsumi’s cheeks were tinted pink. 

“Wahh! Keitaro! You look really cute!” Hiro screamed, throwing his arms up in shock. 

Keitaro felt his cheeks burn at the compliment, reaching up to scratch his cheek nervously, “R-Really…?”

Hiro giggled, clasping his hands together, “Hehe! Yes, you do!”

Keitaro smiled, putting his hands behind his back, “Well, you look good in your uniform too, Hiro…”

Hiro laughed, covering his face. Natsumi chuckled, stepping forward. 

“I have to agree with Hiro, you look quite dashing in your uniform, Keitaro!” Natsumi added, making the blush on Keitaro’s face darken. 

“Oh my gosh guys!” Keitaro tucked his head into his arm, trying to get his face to cool down. 

Hiro and Natsumi laughed, the two walking over to give him reassuring pats on the shoulder. Natsumi cleared his throat, gesturing to their scarfs as he began to explain them. 

“If you guys have noticed, each uniform has been assigned with a specific color scheme. Just to represent each scout’s personality, interests, and hobbies!” 

Hiro jumped up and down, gesturing to his, “It’s so cool! I got an orange colored scarf! My favorite color!”

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah! Orange really fits you, Hiro! Just like your hair! And I got my favorite color too!”

Keitaro looked down at his tie. 

“H-How did you know about these things?” Keitaro was suddenly nervous as to how they knew about his favorite color and animal. 

Natsumi raised a brow, “Didn’t you input them on your registration forms when you signed up?”

“Ehh?” Keitaro shook his head, “I didn’t sign any form… I just showed up and you guys said you were expecting me…”

Hiro chuckled nervously, “Heh, heh… I kinda signed us up on their website about a week ago. You weren’t there, so I filled the form out for you.”

Natsumi hummed in understanding, “Ah, I see! It seems that Hiro knows you rather well, Keitaro!”

Hiro nodded, puffing his chest out proudly at the compliment. 

“Well, we’ve been best friends since we were kids! Of course I know everything about Keitaro!”

Natsumi smiled. He clapped the two on the shoulders, “Now that you two have your personalized uniforms-” He threw his arms up dramatically, “-You are now both official members of Camp Buddy!” 

Hiro whoped loudly, and Keitaro clapped his hands excitedly. 

Natsumi moved towards the door, beckoning the two after him, “Come on, let's go to the mess hall. Scoutmaster Yoshi has prepared something for you two.”

Keitaro rose a brow, following after Hiro and Natsumi as they stepped out of the cabin and into the cool night air, “For us?”

Hiro jumped up and down, running in circles through the grass now that he had the room, “Oh, wow! I wonder what it could be!” 

Natsumi rose a brow, looking over at Keitaro as Hiro raced through the grounds with his arms out like an airplane. 

“Is he always this excitable?” He asked. Keitaro nodded. 

“Yeah, he’s been this way ever since we were kids. It’s actually really nice, his cheerful attitude. It’s really reassuring in bad times. He always makes an effort to cheer me up or make me laugh when I’m upset.”

Natsumi smiled fondly, his gaze never leaving Keitaro. 

“You’re such a supportive friend! I haven’t known you long, but I really admire that.” Natsumi flashed a toothy grin, and Keitaro felt his face flush in embarrassment.

“Ehehe… I’m not all that, Natsumi…” Keitaro tried to wave it off, but the bluenette was firm with his claim. 

“Don’t say that! You’re really kind, Keitaro! You’ve been nothing but friendly towards me since we met. It’s nice, compared to…”

He went quiet suddenly. Natsumi pursed his lips, looking down at the ground in thought. What was he about to say? 

Keitaro opened his mouth to ask, but Hiro spoke up before he could. 

“Hey! Hurry up you slowpokes!” 

Hiro was standing in front of the door, holding it open for them. Keitaro and Natsumi both picked up their pace and entered the mess hall, Hiro closing the door behind them. 

Hiro and Keitaro both gawked at the scene before them. The mess hall was decked out completely with balloons, streamers, and a large sign hanging right over the door. When the door closed, Yoshi strutted towards them, his smile unwavering. 

“Ah! There you are!”

Natsumi stepped forward and flanked Yoshi’s side, facing Hiro and Keitaro. Yoshi cleared his throat. 

“On behalf of the whole camp…”

Hiro and Keitaro held their breaths.

“We’re throwing you, Keitaro and Hiro, a welcome party!” 

The scouts behind them cried out with cheers, popping party poppers and throwing streamers. Hiro and Keitaro both jumped at the proclamation, stepping back at the volume. 

“Welcome to Camp Buddy! Help yourselves and dig in!”

Keitaro was reeling at everything around him. He brought his hands to his face, trying to take everything that he was seeing in. 

“Waahh… did you all really have to do this?”

Natsumi laughed gently, walking over to him and placing his hand on his back, giving him a few reassuring rubs, “You don’t have to be shy, Keitaro! We always throw a welcome party for every new recruit! You two are no exception!”

Yoshi laughed proudly, “Well spoken, Natsumi! Here at Camp Buddy, a scout should never be neglected! You two are a part of our family now! Ahh, yes! Unity!”

Hiro leaned in towards Keitaro, “ _ He’s monologuing again.” _

Keitaro shushed him as Yoshi went on. 

“No one should leave a buddy behind! All scouts must feel welcome in their new home! I look forward to each and every one cooperating and becoming one with each other no matter what. Create spectacular memories and experiences with each other to establish long lasting bonds-!”

While Natsumi listened dutifully, Keitaro and Hiro were wondering if they should speak up again. 

“-And as a Scoutmaster, I will serve as a guide to your success and oversee all the responsibilities given to you are carried out correctly and safely! Furthermore-”

“WOOOOW! Is that pizza!? Hiro suddenly called out, grabbing Keitaro’s shoulders firmly and pointing him towards the food counter. Keitaro tried to twist his head around and face Yoshi again, squirming in Hiro’s grip, “H-Hiro! B-But-”

“Keitaro. It’s pizza. Let’s go. NOW!” 

“B-But Scoutmaster is-”

Before Keitaro could protest any further, Hiro pushed him forward, leaving only Natsumi to listen to his speal. 

“-I am proud as a scoutmaster to see the youths of today rise up to become the beacons of hope in our communit-”

“S-Scoutmaster Yoshi…” Natsumi raised his hand, “...They already left…”

Yoshi, seemingly coming to his senses, cleared his throat, “Oh, right! Very well then. You go ahead and spend time with your new buddies, Natsumi! I’ll be at my office if you need me.”

Natsumi saluted him, “Affirmative!”

And with that, Yoshi turned around and left the mess hall, leaving the scouts to their food and games. As soon as he was out the door, Natsumi immediately fell into a panic. 

“Oh dear! The welcome party’s already so disorganized! It’s just started and there’s already a mess in every corner! And these chairs should be properly aligned! Ah, this table’s filthy too! A little wiping should fix that! Oh, and-”

As Natsumi raced around to clean every corner of the mess hall, Keitaro was watching Hiro scarf down a slice of pizza happily. The two had found a table to sit at and eat dinner, and while everyone else was playing games, Keitaro decided to stick by Hiro to make sure he didn’t hurt himself. 

“I could eat all of this and die happy now! This pizza is heaveeeenn!” Hiro cried, picking up his next slice. Keitaro laughed, picking up a napkin and wiping some stray sauce off of Hiro’s cheek, “Slow down, Hiro! You’re gonna get a tummy-ache later on if you don’t pace yourself!” 

Hiro blushed at Keitaro’s caring nature, nodding with a mouth full of food. Before he could reply, a booming voice interrupted them. 

“HEY! NEW-BLOODS!”

Keitaro looked over Hiro’s shoulder to see Yoichi walking towards them, a box of food in his hand. Hiro whirled around, his brows furrowing in anger at the interupation. 

But instead of any insult, Yoichi leaned on Hiro’s chair, shaking the box in his hand, “If you thought the pizza was good, I  _ bet _ you haven’t tried the fries!” 

Hiro’s eyes lit up with joy. He swallowed his food quickly and stared longingly at the carton. 

“Yoichi!” Keitaro couldn’t help but gasp and call his name in shock. The seemingly docile nature was surprising, especially after what happened earlier that afternoon. 

Hiro, however, wasn’t focused on Yoichi, but the box of fries in his hand, “Wowww… those fries have bacon bits and melted cheese!! Can I try!?”

Yoichi held the box over his head when Hiro reached for one, a sly grin crawling on his face, “Go get some yourself! This one’s MINE!”

Hiro jumped out of his chair, ducking under Yoichi’s arm in a hurry, “Come on, Keitar! Let’s go get some fries!”

Without letting him respond, Hiro dashed off. Keitaro made a move to get out of his chair, “Hey, Hiro! Wait up-!”

“Hey you!”

Keitaro froze when Yoichi spoke. He looked over at Yoichi fearfully, but to his surprise, the boy had a quirky smile on his face. 

“Keitaro, was it?”

Keitaro straightened out, nodding. 

“Y-Yes?”

Yoichi’s grin widened, looking over his shoulder at the partying scouts. He leaned over Hiro’s chair, popping one of the fries into his mouth, “Is this party sick or what!? We get to eat all the food we want!” 

Keitaro smiled nervously, unsure of what to think of Yoichi's seemingly nice approach. 

“R-Right…!” He tried to just answer plainly, seeing if he could get a better reading of his demeanor. 

“Umm…”

Yoichi, however, picked up on the nervousness. He furrowed his brows at Keitaro, leaning over the chair until he was a few inches from Keitaro’s face. 

“W-What…? Are you scared of me?” Yoichi looked slightly hurt at him, his lips tight in uncertainty. Keitaro immediately felt guilt pierce through his chest, seeing his expression. 

But before he could apologize, Natsumi walked over, his arms crossed in a huff. 

“Yoichi! Would you please stop stirring up trouble and making a mess? A-And please go wash your hands. Your uniform’s already covered in stains!” 

Yoichi sat back up and rolled his eyes, tossing another fry into his mouth, “Oh, come on, Mr. Perfect! I wasn’t even making trouble to begin with! Just enjoy the party, ya priss!” 

Natsumi scowled, looking around and gesturing to the whole of the mess hall, “Everything needs to be in order to minimize what needs tidying up later on. The more we keep clean, the easier it will be!”

Yoichi didn’t take this criticism kindly. His grip on his box tightened in anger as he stuck up his nose. 

“Tch! Do whatever you want…”

Keitaro noticed Yoichi’s eyes had glistened over. Was he…

But Yoichi turned around and threw his arms up, a cocky smile now plastered on his face as he screamed to the other scouts, “Who’s ready to play some games!?”

A few of the more rugged scouts called back, and Yoichi cheered. 

“I KNOW I AM! WOOHOO!!”

Yoichi then took off, his box of fries abandoned. Keitaro looked up at Natsumi, seeing the tall scout sigh, “Where does Yoichi get his energy?” 

Natsumi looked down at Keitaro, a worried look on his face, “I hope he wasn’t bothering you too much.”

Keitaro shook his head, his brown hair bouncing back and forth, “Not at all, Natsumi! I’m having tons of fun!”

Keitaro gave him a bright smile to prove his enjoyment, and Natsumi sighed with relief. 

“Okay. That’s great! I’ll go clean up the mess Yoichi made.”

Natsumi gave him a small bow and walked away, leaving Keitaro to himself. 

Keitaro yawned, stretching himself out in the chair. He heard a set of footsteps come towards him, and saw Hiro with more food. 

“Where were you, Keitaro? I thought you were gonna come with me?”

Hiro sat down across from Hiro, and Keitaro sat up and bowed his head apologetically, “Oh! I’m sorry Hiro! I got distracted when Yoichi and Natsumi came over!”

Hiro laughed, shaking his head and dropping the second wave of food in front of them, “Don’t worry, there’s still plenty of food on the table! Oh, and I got you this chocolate bar!”

Hiro reached across the table and handed him a rectangular package. 

“It’s the last one left! It must be really good, so I thought you’d like it!”

Keitaro smiled, taking the chocolate gratefully, “W-Wow! Thank you, Hiro!”

Hiro smiled back, picking up one of his fries and chowing down. 

“So Keitaro! What do you want to do now?”

Keitaro looked down at his food, his mind wandering. Now what? There were so many things he wanted to do. He was tired, so he wanted to relax a little, but the games Yoichi ran off to play sounded really fun too! The food looked really good, and he had noticed Hunter was oddly missing from the party…

“I… I don’t know.”

Hiro cocked a brow, swallowing his food when he noticed Keitaro’s concerned face. 

The brunette looked around, his eyes fixated on all of the other campers. He watched them all silently, racking ideas in his head. He then saw one camper grab a couple of cupcakes from the bar and skip back over to his friends, handing them to them with gratitude. 

Bingo!

“OH! I have an idea! Hiro, wait here!” Keitaro jumped from his chair and raced over to the counter, leaving Hiro stunned with a fry sticking out of his mouth. 

Keitaro slid over to the counter, looking over the various deserts they had. Like Hiro had stated before, they had no more chocolate, but he then noticed multi-colored cupcakes stacked on a display. It had six levels in total, one plate for each color in the rainbow, minus indigo. Keitaro grabbed four cupcakes, placing them on a small paper plate. He grabbed an orange, blue, yellow, and purple cupcake, lining them up on the plate. He then took the chocolate bar and unpackaged it. He broke it into four pieces, sticking each piece into the cupcakes, adding a personal flair. 

Smiling with satisfaction, he picked up the plate and walked back over to Hiro. The boy was staring at him with a brow raised, and he placed his food down. 

“Hey, what happened? You raced off all in a hurry earlier, I was kinda worried…” He said worriedly. Keitaro smiled, shaking his head, “No, no, don’t worry Hirro, nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to give you something!” 

Keitaro then picked up the orange cupcake and held it out. 

Hiro’s eyes widened with glee, a large smile breaking over his face. 

“A cupcake! Sweet! Thanks Keitaro!” Hiro took the treat with zeal, looking it over with a dropped jaw. 

“This looks so good! And what’s the chocolate bit? I didn’t see this on the other ones earlier,” Hiro gently picked it out of the frosting, and Keitaro smiled brightly. 

“It’s part of the chocolate bar you gave me. I wanted my own personal taste!” 

Hiro’s grinned widened, his amber eyes meeting Keitaro’s, “Aww, this is so sweet of you Keitaro! But why did you give this to me?” 

Keitaro smiled, a gentle blush dusting his face, “I wanted to give it to you to say thank you, for bringing me here. We’ve only been here one day, and I’m having so much fun! So, again, thank you, Hiro.”

Hiro’s face erupted, his blush spreading from his cheeks all the way to his ears. He returned Keitaro’s smile, and quickly placed down the cupcake to jump up and give Keitaro a bone-crushing hug. 

“Aww, Keitaro! You’re welcome! You know I’d do anything to make you happy!” 

Keitaro returned the hug with one arm, holding out the plate so that it wouldn’t fall. They stayed locked in the embrace for a few moments before Hiro pulled back, plopping himself back in his chair. 

“Alrighty! Let’s dig in!” Hiro picked the cupcake back up and pulled the paper off, biting down on the sweet. 

Keitaro smiled, looking around the room to see if he could stop the other three he wanted to hand his cupcakes to. 

“I’ll be back, Hiro. I have some other cupcakes I wanna give out.”

Hiro made a noise of acknowledgement, too occupied with the cupcake. Keitaro chuckled gently, and walked away, looking around for the three other scouts. 

He swiftly maneuvered through the crowd, keeping the plate close to his chest so that he wouldn’t drop them. He was about to peek out the door and check outside, when he heard a loud, booming voice. 

“IS THAT ALL YA GOT YA SISSIES!?” 

Keitaro whirled around, peering over the crowd to see Yoichi in a corner, a small group of scouts around him. He smiled, walking over the table where Yoichi was, watching a few of the scouts walk away from him, clutching their arms. 

Keitaro rose a brow, wondering what was going on, when he saw Yoichi lock hands with a scout on the opposite side of the table. After a few seconds, Yoichi slammed his hand down on the table, the other scout crying out in pain. Keitaro’s walk came to a screeching halt, watching the scout pull his arm back and tuck it to his chest. 

Arm-wrestling. 

Keitaro gulped, biting his lip to muster up his courage. He knew Yoichi would probably challenge him, so he needed to distract him with the cupcakes before that could happen. 

When he made it past the ground, Yoichi was standing with one leg on his chair, pumping his fists up proudly. 

“Come on! Is anyone here gonna give me a challenge!?” He cried, flexing his arms out to display his muscles. 

The remaining scouts backed away, not wanting to end up like their friends or with broken knuckles. Keitaro moved into the clearing, holding the plate behind his back and calling to get Yoichi’s attention. 

“Yoichi!” 

The boy in question turned his head, looking right into Keitaro’s eyes. A sly smirk crawled on his face. 

“Hey, new-blood! You here to challenge me?” 

Keitaro shook his head hurriedly, not wanting to end his first day with a twisted elbow. 

“N-No, I’m okay Yoichi. I-I just wanted to give you something!” He said quickly, hoping that would work to draw his attention away from the game. 

Yoichi rose a brow, stepping off the chair and stalking towards him.

“You wanna give me something? What?” 

Keitaro’s lip trembled with nervousness, Yoichi’s entire frame still imposing as he stopped about a foot from him. Keitaro pulled the plate out and picked up the purple cupcake, holding it out to him with a shy smile. 

“H-Here… I wanted to thank you, for your… uhh… hospitality on my first day.”

Yoichi seized up, his eyes going wide with shock and his jaw dropping. A few of the scouts behind them started whispering to each other, judgement written all over their faces. 

Keitaro looked over Yoichi’s shoulder, narrowing his eyes at the gossipers. They in turn, walked away, unsure of Keitaro and what he may be capable of doing. 

“I-I… u-uhhh…” 

Keitaro drew his attention back to Yoichi. He was shocked to see the boy still standing rigid, a deep blush illuminating his cheeks. 

“I-If you don’t want it, th-that’s oka-”

“N-No! Gimmie that!” 

Yoichi quickly unlocked his body and snatched the treat out of Keitaro’s hand, his scowl returning. Keitaro jumped in surprise, but he smiled anyway. 

“I-I added a piece of chocolate to it, to make it a bit more special then the ones on the counter!” 

With his confidence returning, Keitaro pointed to the piece of chocolate sticking out of the frosting, a smile on his face. Yoichi’s brows furrowed, and he looked down at the cupcake angrily. 

“I-I can see it! I’m not fucking blind!” He snapped, peeling off the paper roughly. 

Keitaro sighed, figuring that was the closest to a ‘thank you’ he was gonna get. Keitaro gave him one last smile, pulling the other cupcakes. 

“Well, I’m going to go give my last two cupcakes out. Enjoy it, Yoichi!” 

Before the violette could make a snarky comment, Keitaro spun on his heel and skipped away, happy with how it turned ou-

“HEY!” 

Keitaro froze, hearing Yoichi snap at him. He looked over his shoulder to see Yoichi staring at the ground with an unreadable face. His heart pounded in his chest, a bit scared of what he was going to say or do. 

“Th… Tha… Thanks…”

Keitaro’s face smiled brightly, warm blush spreading on his face. He nodded, “You’re welcome, Yoichi!” 

Keitaro turned around and walked out the door,pride swelling in his chest. He let out a small laugh when he heard Yoichi shout at someone, sounding like a, “What are you lookin’ at!?”

Keitaro stepped out in the cool, summer air, taking a breath of the fresh air. He still hadn’t seen Natsumi and Hunter. Were they not at the party? He knew Natsumi had attended, but after he walked off to clean, he hadn’t seen him since. And he never saw Hunter to begin with. 

He looked around outside, seeing a few small groups of scouts enjoying drinks outside. He pursed his lips in thought, squinting to see through the darkness. 

When his gaze wandered over to their cabin, he saw Natsumi for a split second before he disappeared into the cabin. Keitaro rose a brow in confusion. What did he need in the cabin? Maybe he knew where Hunter was?

Keitaro quickly broke into a trot, moving through the center of the grounds and to their cabin. The lights were on, even before Natsumi had gone in.

Keitaro skipped up the steps, moving towards the door quietly, not wanting to startle who ever was inside. Using his free hand, he gently opened the door, peering in the cabin. 

When he stepped in, he was greeted with the sight of Natsumi… cleaning.

Keitaro stood in the doorway, watching with confusion as Natsumi made each of the beds in a hurry. Why was he cleaning and not enjoying the party? Keitaro stepped fully into the cabin, watching as Natsumi pulled out some spare pillows from the closet. 

“N-Natsumi?”

“AHH!” 

Keitaro reeled back, watching as Natsumi spun around and dropped the pillows in fright. When Natsumi saw him, he placed a hand on his chest, clutching where his heart would be. 

“Oh my, GOODNESS, Keitaro! You scared me!” He panted, sitting down on the bed. Keitaro chuckled weakly, walking over to him quickly. 

“I-I’m sorry Natsumi, I didn’t mean to startle you! Are you okay?” Keitaro walked over and sat down next to Natsumi, placing a hand on his shoulder worriedly. 

Natsumi sighed, nodding his head in relief, “Yeah, I’m okay. My goodness, you came out of nowhere!” 

Keitaro laughed, placing the cupcakes in his lap, “Sorry about that. But anyway, what are you doing in here? Why aren’t you at the party?” 

Natsumi smiled nervously, rubbing his head in embarrassment. 

“Oh, well since there’s no one in here, I figured it would be a good time to clean up! You know, so everyone has a fresh bed when they sleep tonight!” 

Keitaro furrowed his brows, tilting his head in confusion, “Natsumi, you don’t have to do that. You can enjoy the party with everyone else you know…”

However, the bluenette looked down at his hands, twiddling his thumbs together nervously, “But what if Scoutmaster Yoshi sees me slacking off! I don’t want him to think I’m shirking off my duties and being lazy!”

Keitaro gave him a sympathetic smile, reaching out and patting his leg, “He won’t see you that way, Natsumi! You’d just be having fun like the rest of us, that’s what this place is meant for, isn’t it? To create bonds and fun with others?”

Natsumi sighed, his eyes falling to his lap with embarrassment. 

“Hah, I’m sorry that you had to see this… workaholic side of me…” 

Keitaro smiled, reaching behind him and grabbing the blue cupcake. He held it out under Natsumi’s face, catching his attention. 

“Here!”

Natsumi sat up, slowly taking the cupcake with confusion, “What… What is this?” 

Keitaro smiled brightly, “I grabbed some cupcakes from the bar while in the mess hall. I wanted to give them to the people who first approached me here, and you were one of them. It’s a thank you for the hospitality! And I added a piece of chocolate for some personal flair!”

Natsumi’s face began glowing, a blush spreading across his face and up to his ears. He turned to Keitaro, giving him a nervous, but meaningful smile. 

“Th-Thank you, Keitaro! This means a lot!” Natsumi smiled down at the cupcake, pulling out the small piece of chocolate smothered with blue frosting. He took a small bite, sighing in content at the sweetness. Keitaro smiled brightly, his feet wiggling around in excitement. 

Natsumi smiled, giving Keiitaro a small bow in thanks. 

“I really appreciate this Keitaro, thank you,” He whispered, unfurling the paper. Keitaro nodded back, picking the plate back up. 

“It’s my pleasure Natsumi! Now, I’m gonna go find Hunter! He’s the last person I need to find!” Keitaro stood up from the bed, and Natsumi followed suit. 

“I think I’ll go back to the mess hall and grab another snack. This is really good, and I’ve forgotten to eat dinner, soo…”

Keitaro frowned, placing a hand on Natsumi’s back and gently shoving him out of the cabin. 

“Goodness, Natsumi! That’s not good for you, go eat!” Keitaro fussed, Natsumi laughing in return. 

“Haha! Okay, okay, I will! Thank you, Keitaro!” Natsumi called back, stepping out of the cabin. 

Keitaro huffed, looking around the cabin at the work Natsumi had done. Working during a party, he didn’t expect to meet someone like that. But he shrugged, picking up the plate with the last, yellow cupcake on it. 

“Welp, time to go find Hunter!” 

“M-Me?” 

“WAAHA!” Keitaro almost dropped the plate when he heard a soft voice speak up behind him. He whirled around to see Hunter standing in the middle of the cabin, a look of bewilderment on his face. Keitaro sighed in relief, placing a hand on his chest. 

“G-Goodness… I didn’t know you were here Hunter!” Keitaro cried, shaking his head to try and relieve himself from the shock. 

Hunter gave him a fearful look, nodding his head up and down, “I-I’m so sorry Keitaro! I didn’t mean to scare you I just heard you say you were gonna look for me s-so…”

Keitaro’s brows raised in shock. He was here that long? Keitaro wondered why he didn’t say thing or make himself known, but he shook it off and walked towards Hunter, pulling the plate back out. 

“A-Anyway, I wanted to give you something! Here!” 

Keitaro picked up the last cupcake and held it out to him, smiling warmly at the small boy. 

Hunter’s jaw dropped, and a warm blush crawled onto his face, “F-For me? B-But… I haven’t done a-anything to…”

Hunter took the cupcake tentatively, staring at the yellow frosting with wide eyes. 

“Don’t say that Hunter, you were one of the first people to welcome me here, and I want to thank you for that! I also added a little piece of chocolate on the top, as a sort of personal touch!” 

Hunter’s blush deepened, and he stared down at the cupcake. 

“B-But…”

Keitaro smiled, reaching out and patting him on the shoulder, “Come on Hunter, don’t put yourself down like that! You only knew me for a few minutes but you were so friendly to me! I consider you one of my friends already!”

Hunter looked up with wide eyes, his jaw dropping once more, “F-Friend?” 

Keitaro nodded, his brows tightening, “Of course! But, I have to ask, why aren’t you at the party? Have you eaten already?”

Hunter’s stomach growled immediately, contradicting Keitaro’s theory. Hunter’s blush got even darker, and Keitaro just laughed. 

“Hehe! I guess not, huh?” 

“E-Ehhh… that’s so embarrassing!” Hunter cried, trying to hide behind the cupcake. Keitaro chuckled, walking over to the bed to sit down. He patted the seat next to him, and Hunter walked over nervously. When he sat down, Keitaro leaned on his arm. 

“So, why weren’t you at the party if you haven’t gotten any food?” He asked, watching Hunter peel back the paper on the cupcake. The blonde boy sighed, taking the piece of chocolate out. 

“I-I don’t do well with crowds, they make me nervous. Plus, I don’t have a-any friends here, so I’d just be kinda… awkward…” He explained, taking a bite of the chocolate. 

Keitaro smiled sympathetically, sitting up a bit. 

“Don’t say that, Hunter! Remember, I consider you a friend, so don’t feel lonely, okay? If you need someone to talk to, just ask! And I don’t think you’re awkward at all, if that helps,” Keitaro replied, twisting his body to face Hunter fully. 

Hunter pursed his lips, looking down at the half-eaten cupcake with glossy eyes. Keitaro smiled again, and reached up a hand. 

“You got frosting on your cheek.”

Hunter gasped when Keitaro reached out and wiped it off with his thumb, a gentle blush on his face. The two sat in comfortable silence for a moment, before Keitaro stood up once more. 

“Well, I’m gonna head back to the party, I left Hiro at our table and he’s probably getting fussy. You’re free to join me, if you want.”

Keitaro held out his hand, and Hunter stared at it silently. After a moment of thought, the blonde nervously took his hand and stood up with him. 

“Th-Thank you, Keitaro. This means a lot…”

Keitaro nodded, leading Hunter out of the cabin and back under the night sky. They walked in silence until they reached the mess hall, the noise from the scouts and the music erupting when Keitaro opened the door. 

Hunter stepped in nervously, gripping Keitaro’s shirt when a flurry of scouts rushed by. Keitaro patted his hand reassuringly and closed the door behind them. Before they could grab more food, however, they were approached by Yoshi. 

“Ah! There you are Keitaro! I was about to send Natsumi to fetch you. Would you mind coming with me, we’re gonna close the party out here in a bit, and I’d like to say a few words!” 

Keitaro nodded, “Yes sir! Do you need me to get Hiro?” 

Yoshi shook his head, “I’ve already fetched him, just head over to the counter when you’re ready!” 

Keitaro nodded in understanding, and Yoshi walked away, inviting Keitaro to follow him. Keitaro was about to walk, but turned around when he felt Hunter let go of his shirt. 

“Hunter? Aren’t you coming?” 

Hunter shook his head, giving him a nervous smile, “I-I’m okay. I’ll go get some food and you can go with Scoutmaster Yoshi. I’ll catch up with you.”

Keitaro nodded, giving him a small bow before skipping off after Yoshi. 

When he made it to Yoshi’s side, he was met by Hiro running over to him.

“Keitaroooo! Where’d you go! I wanted to say thank you for the cupcake but you took off!” Hiro jumped on Keitaro, pinning his arms to his side in a hug. Keitaro laughed, looking down at the mass of orange hair under his nose. 

“I told you I was going to go and give some more cupcakes out, but I think you may have been too distracted to hear me,” He replied, reaching up to pat Hiro’s head. 

Hiro pouted, leaning back to give Keitaro a frown. 

“I was lonelyyyy!” 

Keitaro laughed, patting Hiro’s head again to try and reassure him, “Come on, Hiro, you know I wouldn’t forget about you! Now come on, Scoutmaster has some things to say!”

Keitaro led Hiro over to one of the tables, sitting down and patting the seat next to him. When Hiro sat down, Yoshi moved to the front of the room and cleared his throat. 

“I would like to have everyone’s attention please!”

The room quieted down almost immediately, the scouts all turning to face him and many moved to the sides of the room to clear a space. 

“This has been a special night for all of us here at Camp Buddy! We have officially welcomed the newest members of Camp Buddy-” Yoshi gestured to them, “-Keitaro Nagame and Hiro Akiba!” 

The other scouts gave a short applause, causing Keitaro to blush lightly. 

“I hope that all of you have unforgettable experiences together, discover more about one another, and most importantly, develop long-lasting bonds! We value each and everyone here. No buddy should ever be left behind!”

Yoshi stepped towards Keitaro and Hiro, smiling down at them. 

“Keitaro, would you like to say anything to your new family?”

The very marrow of Keitaro’s bones froze. What should he say? He wasn’t ready to give a speech!

“Ah…”

Keitaro stood up nervously, looking back at Hiro with uncertainty. The boy in turn gave him a thumbs up and a bright smile. Keitaro looked back up, but the fear returned when he saw every pair of eyes staring at him expectantly. 

Then, he saw Hunter, Yoichi, and Natsumi. They all were either smiling or giving him a thumbs up, as if reassuring him. 

“Umm…”

Keitaro thought for a moment, before taking in a deep breath. 

“I want to thank everyone for your warm welcome to me and Hiro! We really appreciate everyone’s hospitality! I hope we can create wonderful new memories together here at Camp Buddy!”

The crowd gave him an applause, and he saw the three smiling at him, even Yoichi had cracked a half-smile at him. 

Hiro jumped up, grabbing Keitaro’s arm suddenly. 

“Oh, oh, Keitaro! Why don’t we take a picture!?” 

Keitaro smiled, looking down at his camera gleefully, “Great idea, Hiro!” 

Hiro wrapped his arm around Keitaro, giving a thumbs up as Keitaro turned the camera towards them. Before he could click the button, he heard Yoichi yell. 

“HEADS UP MR. PERFECT!” 

The shout was enough to startle Keitaro into pressing the button early when Hiro ducked down to avoid the now soaring soda can. 

When the picture printed, Hiro turned around to fuss at Yoichi, and Natsumi had rushed to get the can. Hunter was facing the other direction, and turned around too late. 

But Keitaro looked at the awkward picture, and smiled. 

_ My first day here in Camp Buddy was NOTHING like what I expected! A lot has happened considering it was just the first day. I had so much fun! _

Keitaro looked up, watching the four boys and Scoutmaster Yoshi all engage in conversation, or an argument in Hiro and Yoichi’s case. 

_ Me and Hiro got to meet a lot of new people.  _

He turned to each boy individually. 

_ Scoutmaster Yoshinori, Natsumi, Hunter, and Yoichi! They all have such unique personalities! I can’t wait to get to know more about them! This is the start of an exciting new chapter of my life! _

He clutched the photo to his chest, a warm blush spreading on his cheeks. 

_ Camp Buddy! Here I go! _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UUuUuuuuGHgHGhgHG
> 
> This thing is soooo effin' long took me foreeeeeverrrrrr
> 
> But here's the first chapter!
> 
> So, the first eight days are gonna be like this, re-writes of the original eight days with some added twists. Once we get to "route selction", that's when the story will take a different, more original turn. So bear with me till then!
> 
> But here we have Day 1! Keitaro has arrived at Camp Buddy, met all of our love-interests, save one flamey boi, and instead of having a moment with just one character, Keitaro decides to give them all a cupcake for their warm (well, warmish in Yoichi's case) welcome to the Camp! When we get to a moment where we'd choose one scene for a character, I'l be putting in an original take on the scene that'll feature Keitaro instead, as this is his route. 
> 
> Well, I hope you guys like it! And yes we will be doing every day! No time skippy nonsense! And yes I'm insane, why do you ask?"
> 
> Tune in next time for Day 2, and the introduction to my personal favorite character! 
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	3. Day 2: Rival?

**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP**

Keitaro groaned, rolling over in bed and throwing the pillow over his head. The loud beeping echoed in his ears, pulling him ever so further from his slumber.

“Rise and shine everyone!”

Natsumi’s voice sounded off, stirring him from his slumber even more. Keitaro sighed, pulling his pillow off his head and slowly sitting up. He watched as Natsumi turned his alarm clock off, turning to smile at Keitaro.

“Good morning, Keitaro! Sleep well?”

Natsumi seemed so chipper, despite it being… Keitaro turned to look at his clock. 

6:30

Keitaro sighed, sitting up completely and throwing his legs over the edge of his bed, “Ahh… good morning… Natsumi,” he said in-between yawns. The blunette smiled, already making his bed neatly. 

To his left, Keitaro heard Hiro groan, curling into a small ball in response to the noise around him. Keitaro reached over and poked him in the back. 

“Hiro… up, up, please…” Keitaro mumbled. 

Hiro groaned again, sitting up slowly and letting out a large yawn. 

Natsumi smiled brightly, clapping his hands together happily, “Good morning you two! Scoutmaster Yoshi will be gathering us at the campgrounds soon. We should start changing into our uniforms. You two go on ahead and change, I’ll go and wake Yoichi up.”

Hiro pouted, his arms giving way as he flopped back down onto his bed, bringing the pillow into his chest lovingly, “But it’s still SO early… can’t I have… five more minutes?”

Keitaro sighed, standing up from his bed to walk over to Hiro’s side. He gently pulled the blanket off of Hiro, who shivered in return. 

“We can’t be late on our first day of camp activities! Come on, Hiro! Get up!”

Hiro sighed, sitting up begrudgingly. He placed his pillow back on the edge of the bed, his head falling sadly, “Hnn… alright…”

Keitaro smiled warmly, grabbing Hiro’s hands and pulling him out of bed.

“I got Hiro, Natsumi! You can go wake up Yoichi, I’ll get him ready,” Keitaro began to lead Hiro off to the bathroom, and Natsumi smiled in gratitude. Keitaro pulled Hiro away, the other scuffling behind him tiredly. When they reached the bathroom, Keitaro led Hiro to his locker and placed him in front of it. 

“Hiro, this is our first official day, show some determination!” 

“Hnnn…”

Hiro reached out blindly and grabbed his locker, pulling it open lazily, “I’m still feeling groggy from last night’s party. And my stomach hurts too…”

Keitaro chuckled, opening his own locker and pulling out his uniform, “Probably because you did nothing but eat last night.”

Hiro whimpered, grabbing the bottom of his shirt to pull it off. But his arms merely flopped about, as if he had forgotten how to use them. 

“Keitaroooo.... Help meeeee…”

Keitaro sighed, shaking his head at Hiro antics. When he went to help Hiro undress himself, a voice spoke up. 

“Hello.”

“WAAHH!” Keitaro jumped back against his locker, whirling around to see Hunter standing a few feet from them, already ready to go. His uniform was on and his hair was brushed. He was fixing the star on his tie when he spoke up. 

“Holy… man! You scared us!” Hiro cried, grabbing his chest to try and regulate his breathing. Keitaro took in a deep breath, putting on a smile to try and not seem rude, “H-Hunter, where did you come from?”

“I’ve been here the whole time. I just finished changing into my uniform.” He said plainly, pointing to his locker which was… right next to Keitaro’s. The brunette blushed in embarrassment, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Oh…” 

Hiro frowned, crossing his arms in a huff, “Geez! Next time at least let us know you’re there, would ya?”

Keitaro whirled around, staring at Hiro with a shocked face. Why was he being rude?! There was no reason to be! Hunter in turn, stepped back nervously, fiddling his thumbs together with regret. 

“I’m sorry! I-I’ll be going now…” Hunter walked away, keeping his head low in shame. Hiro sighed, shaking his head and turning back to his locker. 

“Man, that Hunter guy is such a weirdo. He just came out of nowhere!”

Keitaro puffed out his cheeks, batting Hiro on the shoulder, “Hiro! Sshh! What would you do if he heard that?”

Hiro shrugged, pulling off his shirt and tossing into the basket beside them, reaching into his locker and pulling out his uniform, “What? I’m just saying the truth.”

Keitaro sighed, turning to look back at the door, guilt stabbing at his heart when he remembered how upset Hunter looked. 

“He said he was here the whole time… I can’t believe we didn’t notice him at all.”

Hiro let out a small 'harrumph', sticking his nose up, “It’s not our fault we barely know when he’s there!”

Keitaro seized up. Alright, that was enough. He puffed out his chest and closed his locker door, turning to Hiro to face him completely. 

“Hiro! Stop saying these things about Hunter! You’re being unnecessarily rude!”

Hiro turned to Keitaro, waving his arms in the air to try and defend himself, “Oh, come on! You know I’m right-”

“Shh!!” Keitaro waved his hands around and brought them in front of Hiro’s face, not letting him finish his sentence. Before Keitaro could scold him further, he heard two other voices coming towards them from outside the bathroom.

“I told you, Yoichi! She really is out there.”

“Ugh… not her again. I don’t wanna play her stupid games today.”

Keitaro recognized them as Natsumi and Yoichi. He watched as the two entered the bathroom, Yoichi looked rather perturbed at being awake. Natsumi strode over to his locker, pulling it open to change into his uniform. 

Hiro perked up at seeing them, wanting to draw the attention away from himself. 

“Hey, guys! Who’re you talking about?” 

Keitaro sighed, knowing he wasn’t going to get through to Hiro now. He began to button his shirt up when Yoichi answered him. 

“None of your business, Torch-head!”

Keitaro snorted, biting his lip and thrusting his hand against his mouth, turning away from them. Hiro reared up, turning and glaring at Yoichi. 

“Did you just call me… Torch-head!?”

Yoichi smirked, turning to face Hiro completely, “And if I did?”

“Why you-”

“Now, now, you two. Don’t get fired up so early in the morning,” Natsumi stepped in-between them, placing a hand on either of their chests. Yoichi huffed, turning around and ripping his locker open. Natsumi sighed, turning to Hiro to answer his original question, “We were talking about Ms. Yuri, Hiro.”

Keitaro rose a brow, pulling on his shorts, “Who is Ms. Yuri, Natsumi?”

Natsumi smiled, pulling his shirt out and hanging it on his locker door, “She is Scoutmaster Yoshi’s assistant camp counselor.”

“Yeah, and she’s a nut-job.” Yoichi interrupted Natsumi, slamming his locker door shut and tossing his clothes onto the nearby bench. 

Natsumi chuckled at Yoichi’s add-on, shaking his head in disagreement, “Everyone knows about Ms. Yuri’s unique hobbies.”

Keitaro rose a brow. Unique hobbies? 

“Tsk! Don’t tell me you’re  _ actually _ looking forward to playing her games?” Yoichi asked, curling his lip back at the thought. He shuttered, “You probably enjoy them, don’t you? You’re so lame…”

“Are we meeting her today?” Keitaro asked, sitting down on the bench to but his shoes on. Natsumi sat down next to him, nodding in confirmation. 

“Oh, you’ll meet her alright,” Yoichi propped a foot on the bench next to Keitaro, leaning on his knee to get closer to the brunette. 

“Just sure you fly isn’t down when you do or all hell breaks loose!” Yoichi pointed down at Keitaro’s nethers, causing the boy in turn to blushed darkly, closing his legs as if to hide himself. 

“I’m sure she’ll love meeting you both! She always prepares the most interesting activities for us campers!” Natsumi said with a laugh, trying to lighten the mood. When he looked up and noticed that Hiro wasn’t dressed yet, he clapped his hands together. 

“A-Anyway, You two should get changed quickly! The scoutmasters are waiting, and I believe that they’ve got something very important to tell you two!”

Keitaro stood from the bench, picking up Hiro’s shirt and pulling it onto the other, who in turn fussed around. 

“Ah! Alright, Natsumi! I’ll get Hiro ready!”

“MMGFHMFG!”

Hiro squirmed and swore under his shirt, trying to tear himself away from Keitaro’s grasp. This is what happened Hiro didn’t prepare himself quickly enough. Keitaro took the initiative, and would assist him in whatever task it was. And once he started helping, Hiro had no choice but to let it happen. He’d tried fighting back before, but something about Keitaro’s physical strength changed when he went into “mother-hen mode”, as Hiro liked to call it. 

“Alright then! I just need to gather everyone first! We’ll catch up with you two later!” Natsumi smiled, tapping Yoichi’s shoulder. The violette huffed, tying his scarf to his arm and walking out, already ready for the day. Natsumi waved at Keitaro and left the bathroom, humming to himself happily.

Keitaro waved back, holding Hiro down with the other arm. 

“MMGH-Keitaroooo! I can dress myself!” Hiro yelled, finally pulling his head through the top of his shirt. Keitaro chuckled, reaching into the sleeves and pulling his arms through effortlessly. 

“You asked for help earlier, and seeing as how you made no progress during our conversations, I figured I’d help you along!” He explained, pulling Hiro shorts from the bench. 

Hiro tried to run, but Keitaro’s grip was firm and immovable. The amber-eyed boy silently yelled at himself, knowing if he’d gotten ready faster, he wouldn’t have had to succumb to this. 

Finally giving up, Hiro let Keitaro help him. After a minute, Keitaro pulled his camera over his neck, walking towards the door. 

“Come on, Hiro! We need to go see what the scoutmasters need us for!” He chirped. Hiro shuffled past him, his face flushed with embarrassment. Keitaro patted his back as he passed him, walking out of the bathroom with Hiro and out of the cabin. 

When they opened the door, Keitaro took in a big breath of the air, sighing at the freshness to it. He skipped down the steps, his excitement kicking in at the thought of his first day and what they were going to do. When Hiro made it down the stairs and flanked his side, he looked up to see Scoutmaster Yoshi talking with a young woman, who Keitaro assumed to be ‘Ms. Yuri’.

“Scoutmaster Yoshi!” Keitaro called, waving his arm. 

The man turned at the sound of his name, and smiled brightly at the boys. He walked over to them quickly, the woman skipping along behind him. 

“Ah! There you are! I’m afraid you two haven’t met Yuri. She’s your scoutmaster just like me.” Yoshi gestured to the woman, who gave them a bow in greeting. She had soft pink eyes, and well-kept pink hair. When she sat up from her bow, she gave them a wave. 

“Why hello there, you two! My name is Yuri Nomoru! You can just call me Ms. Yuri!”

Keitaro smiled, waving back at her enthusiastically, “Hello, Ms. Yuri!” 

Hiro waved as well, flashing her a bright grin, “Hi there, ma’am! It’s a pleasure to meet ya!”

Yuri placed her hands on her cheeks, smiling at the boys warmly, “My, my, what a cute pair! It’s a pleasure to meet you two as well!”

Yoshi cleared his throat, crossing his arms as he began to speak, “Me and Ms. Yuri are here to give you a quick briefing about Camp Buddy!” 

Yuri clapped his hands together, “Right! Now that the two of you are an official part of our Camp Buddy family, we have few but very important rules to follow during your stay here in the camp!” 

Keitaro shrunk a bit, wondering what kind of rules this place would have, “R-Rules?” 

Hiro gave a side smirk and face that said, ‘Did you expect them to have no rules?’

Yuri smiled, nodding in reply, “Yep! We call it the ‘Buddy Law’!”

Keitaro let out a small chuckle at the name, wondering if  _ everything _ here had the word ‘buddy’ attached to it somehow. And judging by Hiro’s similar expression, he was wondering the same thing.

“Yuri, why don’t you tell them about it?” Yoshi suggested, Yuri nodding back. 

“Of course! Rule number one! ‘A buddy should be kind, helpful, and trustworthy to each other’! We know that all of you have different personalities, but that shouldn’t stop each of you from helping a buddy in need! If I catch you being mean to someone else, you’re gonna get it!” Yuri waggled her finger at the end, furrowing her brows in mock anger. 

Keitaro pursed his lips, not wanting to be on the receiving end of any potential anger from her. If Yoichi spoke of her in a sort of nervous way, that was a clear sign to stay on her good side. 

“Second rule!” 

Yoshi speaking up suddenly made the two jump, whirling around to face him. 

“A buddy must always be ready for anything! No matter what situation you may face; you must always be prepared!” He explained, placing his hands on his hips. Yuri nodded, clearing her throat as the baton was passed back to her. 

“And last, but certainly not least, rule number three!” 

Hiro and Keitaro took a step closer to each other at her tone.

“A buddy should always show a bright smile on his face!”

Keitaro smiled, feeling a warmth in his heart at such a sweet rule. Hiro raised a brow, contemplating how these were actually rules, but he kept his mouth shut when he saw Keitaro’s bright smile.

“Even through your hardest and saddest times, a buddy’s smile will surely lift up anyone’s spirit! So always do your best to show your warmest smile! But what matters most, is that you guys have fun! Alright?” Yuri explained, clapping her hands together at the end. 

Keitaro and Hiro nodded, turning back to Yoshi when he spoke up again, “And that’s you need to know about the Buddy Law! Do you two understand?”

“Yes, sir!” Keitaro and Hiro spoke in unison, both giving him a salute like Natsumi always had. 

Yoshi smiled brightly, nodding proudly. 

“OH, one more thing!” Yuri spoke up, drawing even Yoshi’s attention. 

“Since the camp focuses on team building and outdoor activities… mobile devices and other gaming gadgets are not allowed during camp activities! If you fail to follow these rules, I’m afraid I will have to confiscate your device!”

Keitaro looked down at his camera. 

“There are many fun things you can do without them! Just look outside! But if you need to talk to a loved one, please don’t hesitate to use the phone at the scoutmaster’s office.”

Keitaro raised his hand. 

“Umm… excuse me… does this count?” He held up his camera, pointing to it nervously. Yuri rose a brow, looking over at Yoshi. 

“What kind of camera is it, Keitaro?” Yoshi asked. Keitaro smiled, pointing it down at a nearby flower and taking a quick picture. When the picture printed out, he showed it to Yoshi and Yuri. 

“It’s an instant camera! It doesn’t have any internet access or anything like that, and I was hoping to use it to take pictures of all the fun things we’ll be doing! Is that alright?” 

Yuri and Yoshi shared a glance for a moment. As if silently communicating, they both nodded to each other before nodding back to Keitaro. 

“Alright, since it doesn’t have internet access, and it seems like a great hobby of yours, we’ll make an expectation. But we expect you to use it wisely and properly. If you make trouble with it, we’ll have no choice but to confiscate it, understood?” Yoshi agreed. Keitaro nodded happily, hugging the camera to his chest. 

“Yes, of course! Thank you so much!” Keitaro jumped on his feet, excited now that he had official permission to use his camera. Yoshi smiled at the young boy’s excitement before continuing with his speech. 

“As both of you might already know, Camp Buddy is a scout-themed adventure summer camp! I know that sounds like a lot and might even seem a bit confusing too-!”

_ “Here we go again~” _ Mouthed Hiro. 

“-But we open the camp every summer to reach out to the youth in order to engage them in hands-on activities that are worthwhile and essential to becoming valuable members of society! Especially in a modern age like this where people are slowly losing their sense of interpersonal communication! It’s all about working together and learning from each other, no matter what differences we all have! Furthermore-”

“SIR!” 

Hiro and Keitaro sighed in relief when they heard Natsumi behind them, Yoshi’s words starting to go in one ear and out the other. They turned around to see Natsumi approaching them with Yoichi and Hunter in tow. 

“I’ve gathered everyone up!” Natsumi stated proudly, stopping next to Hiro. Yoshi smiled, looking at the boys one by one before continuing. 

“Okay, great! Now that we’re all here, we have a very important announcement to make! Yuri?”

“Ah! Yes, of course! Tomorrow, we will be having an overnight camping trip at the nearby prairie! As your scoutmasters, we concluded it would be a fun first activity for Hiro and Keitaro to experience the great outdoors of Camp Buddy!”

A large smile broke across Keitaro’s face. Camping!? This is the thing he was most excited for, and they were gonna do it right off the bat! Hiro leaned slightly away from Keitaro, wondering if he was going to explode with how fast he was bouncing on his feet. 

“Aren’t you all excited? We’re gonna learn about plenty of useful things regarding survival! We might even roast some marshmallows by the campfire!”

Yoshi smiled, continuing for Yuri, “We want you all to prepare your camping gear and equipment for this activity. Make sure to finish preparing before sunset. We will be checking everything you have packed for the trip. If you have any questions, I’ll be in my office!”

With that, Yoshi and Yuri walked away, leaving the boys and the rest of the campers to go and pack their things. After a few moments of silence, Yoichi let out a long sigh. 

“Wow… sounds… fun… another lame camping trip.”

Natsumi smiled gently, patting his shoulder, “Come on, don’t be like that Yoichi. It’ll be great! We get to scout new places! We might even see something you find interesting along the way!” 

Yoichi, however, shrugged his hand off, “Like what? Poop and sticks? Count me out.”

Yoichi spun on his heel and walked off, leaving Natsumi standing dejectedly. Hiro skipped over and patted his arm, leaning down to give him a warm smile. 

“Ah, don’t listen to him Natsumi; Keitaro and I think it will be fun! Right, Keitaro?” 

Keitaro nodded enthusiastically, still bouncing on his toes. Natsumi smiled, placing his hand over Hiro’s. 

“Aww! I wish everyone had the same enthusiasm as you two.”

Before they could go on, Hunter cleared his throat, raising his hand nervously. 

“Umm… if staying in the camp is an option, can I stay here?” 

Natsumi turned to face him, his face falling back into one of sadness, “Oh, not you too, Hunter. All of us are required to go. ‘We leave no buddy behind!’ That’s my personal fourth buddy law!” 

“LAAMMEE!!!!” Yoichi shouted at Natsumi from the mess hall entrance, causing Natsumi to whirl around angrily. 

“I heard that, Yoichi!” 

“You were supposed to!” He laughed, opened the door to the mess hall and disappeared behind it. Natsumi sighed, turning back to Hunter. 

“Ugh… anyway, Hunter you can’t be left behind. It’s the scoutmaster’s orders,” He explained, hoping Hunter would understand. 

Hunter sighed, placing his arms at his side, “Okay… I’ll be at the cabin then.”

Hunter then trudged off, his head hung low in disappointment. Natsumi let out a long sigh, rubbing his neck in exasperation. 

“Anyway… I will prepare my things early so that I can finish more chores before sundown . You two should pack up as well! See you around!” Natsumi gave them a small bow before turning around and walking after Hunter, disappearing into their cabin. 

Keitaro felt the excitement in him build up and finally spill over. He clapped his hands in joy and grabbed Hiro’s hands, shaking them up and down, “Ohh, Hiro! I’m so excited! I can’t wait to hike through the woods! I’ve never done that before! Think about all the things we can find while hiking! OH! I should bring extra film for my camera, this is gonna be so much fun!”

Hiro let out a hearty laugh, shaking Keitaro’s hands back to share in his enthusiasm, “I’m more excited about the marshmallow part, but yeah, hiking sounds fun!” 

Keitaro giggled, drawing his hands back from Hiro’s, “Hiro, don’t you think about anything else besides food?” 

Hiro swiveled his head back and forth, placing his hand over his heart. He puffed out his chest and cleared his throat as if he was about to make a huge, dramatic speech. 

“Food if love. Food is life.”

Keitaro sniggered a bit, shaking his head. 

“ _ Psst… Hey~” _

Keitaro felt a cold chill run down his spine. He turned around to see Yuri peering out from behind the scoutmaster’s cabin, her eyes narrowed and a sly grin on her face. Hiro looked over Keitaro and reeled back ever so slightly, feeling a bit off-put by her peeping. 

“H-Hey… what…” Hiro tried to speak, but with her sudden appearance throwing him off guard, he couldn’t find the right words. This time, it was Keitaro who took the initiative in the conversation. 

“Scoutmaster Yuri! Can we help you with something?” 

Yuri skipped out from behind the building, trotting over to him with a big smile on her face. She stopped about three feet away before clasping her hands together, leaning down a wee bit to get eye level with them. 

“Are you two somehow related?”

Keitaro and Hiro exchanged a look of confusion. 

“I noticed you two really get along well with each other. This may sound ironic, but that’s actually pretty rare here,” She finished, her eyes going back and forth between the two. 

So that’s what it was. Hiro chuckled and shook his head, moving up to Keitaro’s side and taking his hand into his own, “Oh, we aren’t related, Ms. Yuri. Keitaro is my best friend!”

Yuri stood up straight, her hands coming to the side of her face, “Oh, best friends? How long have you two known each other?” 

Hiro puffed out his chest with pride, “Me and Keitaro grew up together!”

Yuri’s expression seemed to change. A gentle blush spread across her face as Hiro exclaimed about his time knowing Keitaro. Keitaro looked up at Yuri, seemingly the only who took notice of her change in demeanor. 

“OH?” Yuri gasped, her hands coming to her cheeks. Hiro nodded proudly.

“Yeah! Ever since we were kids! And we both came from the same school and city! And I promised to always be right by Keitaro’s side forever!” 

“F-Forever…?” Yuri’s eyes began to gloss over, like she was on the brink of tears. Keitaro, on the other hand, felt a hot blush spread over his cheeks at Hiro’s cheesy proclamation. 

“H-Hiro, that’s really embarrassing!”

Hiro shook his head, reaching out to give the flushed boy a hug, “Haha! But it’s true!”

Keitaro squirmed a bit, trying to hide his face as Hiro smothered him with affection and praise; but something about Yuri’s entire image began to shift. 

Keitaro looked over to see her eyes now darkened over, her gaze set on the ground. Her head was down, masking her face from his view. 

“B… BL…” 

Keitaro rose a brow, tapping Hiro on the shoulder to grab his attention, “Uh… Ms. Yuri? Are you… alright?”

Hiro looked up, concern plastered over his face as he finally noticed Yuri’s ominous change in attitude. He squeezed Keitaro a bit tighter, nervousness crawling into his chest. 

“Together… forever…”

Keitaro leaned forward, “Huh?”

And like Yoichi had stated in the bathroom that very morning…

All hell broke loose. 

“UWAAAAHHH!! I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE! Bonds between two best friends is just… just, KYAHH!”

Hiro jumped in Keitaro’s arms in fright, latching onto him tightly. 

“‘A bond that’s been cultivating for such a long time! A bond stronger than ordinary connection! Born from just being classmates, then slowly growing, developing into LOVE! Until that day comes when SOMEONE steps up, collecting his courage for one shining moment to confess! And both will run towards the sunset holding each other’s hands! YOU MUST BE A COUPLE!!! RIGHT!? RIGHT!? PLEEEEASE TELL ME YOU TWO ARE A COUPLE!!!!”

Hiro and Keitaro immediately separated, facing red as tomatoes at Yuri’s sudden accusation. Keitaro felt his heart pound against his rib cage at the thought of him and Hiro as lovers. 

“W-WHA!? D-Did you come up with that whole story just now?!” Hiro cried, covering his eyes to try and cover his blushing face. Keitaro swung his arms around in a dramatic fashion, trying to remedy the situation before it got anymore out of hand. 

“N-No, Ms. Yuri! It’s not like that at all!” he cried, hoping that by saying this, she’d back down. 

But it only made it worse.

“NOOOOOO!! I cannot accept that! You two have already been shipped together by my little fragile heart!” Yuri grabbed her chest, shaking her head wildly. 

“W-What!?” Keitaro asked, reeling back as Yuri took a step closer. 

“I’m already imagining all the things you two have done~!! My new OTP!!!!” She all but screamed, her hands on her cheeks, face redder than ever. 

Hiro rose a brow, his arms falling to his sides, “O… T… P?” 

Yuri suddenly lunged forward, grabbing the two by their hands and pulling them towards her, “So you guys are the typical childhood-best-friends setup, right? Tell me! Do you share rooms?!”

Keitaro and Hiro tried pulling their hands away, but the small woman was suddenly ten times stronger than the two of them combined. 

“Have you taken baths together?!” 

Keitaro and Hiro looked away from each other as Yuri pulled them closer.

“Do you sleep with each other??”

Keitaro and Hiro were at a loss for words. 

“Do you hug each other while sleeping!?”

Her eyes were now blown wide, and she hugged the two of them to her chest. 

“ _ Have you actually tried doing i-” _

“Y-YURI!”

Hiro and Keitaro felt relief wash over them when Yoshinori’s voice sounded off behind Yuri. The pinkette spun around, and the two took the chance to rip themselves away from her grasp. 

“S-Scoutmaster Yoshi! Ms. Yuri is acting weird!” Hiro cried, tucking himself into Keitaro’s side to try and hide himself. Keitaro held him back, his heart beating a million miles a minute. 

Yoshi let out a heavy sigh, reaching out and taking Yuri’s shoulder to keep her from moving back towards the boys. 

“This calls for a fanfic! Do you mind telling me specifically what type of bond you two share? Is it intimate??” She asked, waving her arms around. 

“T-That’s enough, Yuri!” Yoshi barked, pulling her back towards him. But Yuri suddenly ripped herself from his grasp and jumped onto Keitaro, hugging the boy tightly to her chest. 

“WAIT! I haven’t seen them kiss yet!!”

Keitaro was about to faint. He gently squirmed against Yuri’s grasp, and Yoshi walked over irritably. He grabbed Yuri and pulled her off of Keitaro, tucking her to his side and allowing Keitaro a chance to breathe.

“Alright Yuri, let’s go get you something to calm you down…”

“AT LEAST LET ME SEE THEM KISS! PLEASE!!”

“YURI NO!”

Keitaro stepped behind Hiro, now afraid of getting too close to Yuri. Hiro puffed his chest out, as if trying to protect him. 

“Ah! If you two don’t mind… I need to bring Yuri to the mess hall. She probably forgot to have her breakfast again,” He explained, his head hung in shame. 

“WAITTT! If you two aren’t a couple then you must already like someone else here in the camp!?”

“YURI, PLEASE-”

“Yoichi has six pack abs! If you’re into that! Ohh, Hunter is a foreigner! He’s got that silent but cute factor!! Or maybe you want a more handsome senpai type like Natsumi!?”

“THAT’S ENOUGH, YURI! You’re giving me second hand embarrassment! LET’S GO!”

“Kyahhhh! Wait- NOOOOOOOOOO!!!”

Yoshi suddenly slung Yuri over his shoulder and stomped away, whispering a thousand apologies to Hiro and Keitaro as he did so. 

And then… there was silence. 

Hiro and Keitaro stood in silence, unable to comprehend what just occurred. They stood for a few moments, looking at the ground, then back at each other. 

“Wh… What just happened?” Keitaro asked, his voice soft. 

“I don’t know…” Hiro whispered back, his face still red from all the romantic and even intimate things Yuri mentioned about them. 

Keitaro shook his head, trying to push his embarrassment down into his gut, “L-Let’s just head back to the cabin, and invite everyone to lunch.” 

Hiro nodded, fanning his face to try and cool it off due to his growing blush, “G-Good idea, Keitaro!”

The two boys walked silently to their cabin, their minds racing after that entire ordeal with Yuri. All the things she said about them being a couple had them flustered and confused, unable to look each other in the eye. 

Keitaro had his hand on his chest the entire walk there, trying to calm his racing heart. The thoughts of doing all the things Yuri had announced with Hiro were running through his head. Sleeping in the same room and bed, holding each other while sleeping, each kissing-

Keitaro suddenly slapped his face, shaking his head vigorously as semi-naughty came into his brain. Thankfully, Hiro didn’t take notice of this behaviour due to his gaze being locked to the ground. 

When they arrived at the cabin, Keitaro opened the door and allowed Hiro to walk in before him. When the entered the cabin, they saw Natsumi at his bed dutifully packing his belongings. 

“Oh! Keitaro, Hiro! Are you two okay?” 

Natsumi immediately took notice of their distance between each other, worried something had gone wrong between them. Keitaro racked his brain, trying to put into words what they just experienced. 

“Ummm…”

“Ms. Yuri kinda weirded us out when you guys left,” Hiro answered, his hand coming to rub the back of his head. Natsumi nodded in understanding, a sympathetic smile on his face. But before he could respond, laughter broke out a few feet away from them. 

“Hahaha! I told ya’ll she was a whacko!” 

The three looked over to see Yoichi laying on his bed, his arms behind his head and feet kicked up, a smug grin on his face after being proven right. Natsumi frowned at his words, however, crossing his arms in a huff. 

“Yoichi, don’t be like that to Ms. Yuri!” He scolded, Yoichi shrugging indifferently. Natsumi turned back to Hiro and Keitaro, his curiosity peaked. 

“What did she say to you two, anyway?” He asked, the two immediately looking down at the floor. Hiro rubbed his hands together, debating on how to answer. 

“Err… how should I say this… ummm….”

Keitaro’s face flushed a dark red, his eyes never leaving the floor as he answered for Hiro, “...Something about Hiro and I being a… couple…”

Natsumi’s brows rose in surprise, and Yoichi just shook his head in what appeared to be disappointment. 

“She even told us stuff like Natsumi being handsome, Hunter being cute, and Yoichi having six-pack abs…” Keitaro finished, his imagination now running wild as he listed off embarrassing, yet true facts about his cabin-mates. 

Natsumi, however, instead of being embarrassed in any way, just started laughing. 

“Scoutmaster Yuri is like that sometimes; pairing everyone with each other. She’s kinda into the stuff. Quite the interesting hobby, isn’t it?”

Yoichi blanched, sticking his tongue out in disgust, “Are you kidding me!? You actually enjoy those weird games of hers?”

As Yoichi climbed off his bed, Natsumi shrugged, “I’d be lying if I said I don’t. It’s really fun, seeing her like that.”

Hiro had walked over to his bed and flopped down, burying his face into his covers in embarrassment. Yoichi shook his head, crossing his arms as he went to stand next to Keitaro. 

“You just like because she always calls you handsome’n shit,” He snorted, sticking his tongue out again. 

Natsumi chuckled, his hands going to his hips, “She called you muscular and Hunter cute! She’s always complimenting us all!”

“I will take no part in this.”

Yoichi shouted and jumped two feet forward when a soft spoke up behind him. Keitaro turned to see Hunter standing a few feet from them, an unreadable expression on his face. 

“GOD DAMMIT! Where the hell did you come from!?” Yoichi shouted, his hand coming to clutch his shirt. Hunter just looked at him with furrowed brows, “I… I was here the entire time…”

Keitaro watched as Yoichi grabbed the nearest bedpost to catch his breath, and Hiro rose back up from the bed in response to the sudden yell. Keitaro scratched his cheek in confusion, and Natsumi took notice of Keitaro’s awkward stance. 

“Ah! We’re so sorry about that, you two! On everyone’s behalf, I apologize for acting so weird!” 

Yoichi rolled his eyes, standing up straight after regaining his composure, “Psh! You’re the weirdest among us, Mr. Perfect.”

Keitaro smiled, shaking his head at Yoichi’s comment, “No, not at all! I think you’re all really fun and interesting!” Keitaro clapped his hands together, the embarrassment from earlier finally fading away. The four other boys all looked at Keitaro with soft faces, a bit embarrassed at his compliment. 

“Haha! You really are open-minded to almost everything, Keitaro! It makes it really easy to talk to you!” Natsumi complimented, giving Keitaro a soft smile. 

The brunette smiled, turning his gaze to the floor with a soft blush on his face. After finally recovering, Hiro stood up and clapped his hands together, his fun demeanor restored. 

“Anyway, we came here to invite everyone for lunch!” He announced, swinging his arms out. Keitaro ducked down, narrowly missing getting slapped in the face. 

Natsumi let out a small ‘oh’ noise, his face turning into one of concern, “But Scoutmaster Yoshi said we need to finish preparing before sundown! I need to finish preparing my stuff!” 

Natsumi jumped away, rushing over to his locker as he remembered the task he was given. Hiro sighed, his arms falling to his sides. 

“I’m so hungry…” 

Keitaro smiled at Hiro, turning to Yoichi and Hunter, “Since you two are here, why don’t we all have lunch together?”

Yoichi snorted, turning his body away from Keitaro to face the door, “Can’t. And speaking of lunch, I have stuff to do.” 

Yoichi walked out without another word, and Hunter began rubbing his hands together nervously, seeing an opportunity with the violette absent. 

“I… need to start preparing while Yoichi isn’t around to bother me. I’m really sorry Keitaro, but this is kind of a rare opportunity for me. I’ll catch up with two two at the mess hall later.”

He gave a quick bow in apology before scurrying off to grab his things. 

Keitaro’s gaze fell to the floor in dejection, and Hiro huffed irritably, “Hmph! If they don’t want to have lunch with us, fine! They don’t have to make all those lame excuses!”

“Aww…” Keitaro twiddled his thumbs together, his brows furrowed in sadness. Hiro saw Keitaro’s hurt expression, and skipped over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. 

“Hey, I’ve got you all to myself and that’s what matters! C’mon Keitaro, let’s go!”

Hiro grabbed Keitaro’s hand, pulling him behind him and out of the cabin. Keitaro tried to hide his disappointment as they walked, not wanting to seem ungrateful towards Hiro. When they entered the mess hall, Hiro immediately took a deep breath in, sighing blissfully. 

“Ahhhh~ It smells soooo good in here!” Hiro linking his hands together, spinning around gleefully. Keitaro gave a half-smile to Hiro before dropping his gaze again, “I really wish we could have had lunch with everyone…” 

Hiro spun around, his brows furrowed, “Huh? You’re still thinking about that? Don’t you wanna spend your lunch with me?” 

Keitaro saw the hurt expression on Hiro’s face and shook his head wildly, stepping forward a bit. 

“No, it’s not like that, Hiro! I just think it would have been more fun if they were all here with us, that’s all,” He reassured Hiro, smiling brightly. Hiro sighed, rubbing the back of his head. 

“I see… well, we still have a lot of days left here at camp so I’m sure we’re bound to have lunch with them at some point.”

Keitaro nodded, lacing his fingers together in embarrassment, “I guess you’re right, I’m sorry about that…”

Hiro shook his head, trying to reassure Keitaro, “Hey, it’s fine Keitaro, I know you just want to make friends, so don’t worry-OH! Look! Aren’t those the scoutmasters over at that table?” Hiro's attention was immediately drawn away when he saw Yoshi and Yuri sitting at one of the tables with their lunch. Keitaro looked behind him, seeing the two engaged in a casual conversation. They immediately took notice of Yuri’s calm demeanor. 

“Looks like Ms. Yuri’s finally calmed down, huh?” Hiro asked, the nervousness in his voice clear due to the earlier events. Keitaro, however, seemed to not notice Hiro’s nerves. He instead, saw an opportunity. 

“Maybe we can have lunch with them instead? We should get to know our scoutmasters a bit, don’t you think?” Keitaro spun around to face Hiro, a hopefully smile on his face. 

Hiro’s stomach dropped, his arms falling to his side, “Eh? Wait, are you serious? Wouldn’t that be… awkward? Ms. Yuri might come up with another embarrassing fantasy about us two…”

Hiro watched as Keitaro turned around and began to walk towards them, his concerns pushed aside. Hiro sighed heavily, reaching out to try and convince Keitaro against the action before-

“ORDER UP!!!”

Hiro spun around to see a man sprinting towards them, a bowl in his hand. Hiro watched as the man rushed past him and was about to run straight into Keitaro. 

“Yikes! Keitaro, watch out!”

“What- AH!” Keitaro scrambled wildly when he saw the tall man running towards him. He tried to jump back, but tripped over his feet and fell backwards. Hiro ran over to catch him, and Keitaro’s outstretched feet caused the man to trip forward. 

“WOAH!” 

The man’s foot had caught Keitaro’s ankle, and he flew forward. 

“Crap! He slipped! He’s gonna-”

The man was thrown forward and sent crashing into the table the scoutmaster’s were sitting at. He let out a grunt of pain as his face hit the table with a hard ‘smack’. The bowl flew out of his hand and straight onto Yoshi, who yelped in pain. 

“AH! Ow, ow, it’s hot!” Yoshi pushed his chair back and pulled his shirt out, trying to keep the drenched cloth off his skin as it burned him. Yuri pushed her chair away, ducking back from any flying liquid, “Oh dear!”

The man sat up, wincing as he rubbed his nose. When he looked over and saw Yoshi, he let out a cry of fear. 

“GAAAH!! I’m sorry Yoshi!!”

Yoshi sighed, looking down at his now ruined uniform, “This is quite a mess…”

The man scrambled off the table, grabbing the towel the bowl was sitting on, “I have a towel here, p-please let me clean that up for you!” The man moved to Yoshi’s side to try and clean the mess he had made.

Yuri gasped, a blush coming to her face when she finally noticed that the liquid had also spilled over Yoshi’s pants, specifically over his nethers. 

“No, no, Aiden, it’s alright. You don’t have to,” Yoshi grabbed his hands, pushing them away, a strained smile on his face. 

The man, Aiden, sighed heavily, his head falling sadly, “I’m sorry! It will never again!”

Yoshi shook his head, smiling reassuringly, “It’s really alright. More importantly, are you hurt? You tripped and landed face first. You shouldn’t coming so fast when you’re serving something hot.”

As Yoshi tried to gently lecture Aiden, Yuri had scooted closer, her eyes blown wide, “C-Coming!? S-Something hot!?!”

Aiden smiled nervously, rubbing his hands together, “I’m sorry Yoshi! I’ll, uh… be more careful and gentle next time…”

Hiro rose a brow,  _ “Are they TRYING to make this sound so… uhh…” _

“G-Gentle!?” Yuri cried, shaking her hands together. 

_ “Sexual…?” _

Yoshi looked down at his pants, deciding to try and lighten the mood. 

“Hehe, is this milk you spilled on my pants? I hope it won’t stain.” He laughed, trying to perk Aiden up. But he only succeeded in making him feel worse, and sending Yuri’s fantasies spiraling. 

“A-Aiden’s milk…!?” 

Aiden shook his head wildly, reaching forward once more, this time grabbing Yoshi’s shirt. 

“Please, take it off now so I can wash it immediately!” He pleaded, Yoshi grabbing his wrists to try and keep Aiden calm. 

“A-Aiden-you don’t have to-!”

“I CAN’T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!! JUST TAKE ME TO PARADISE ALREADY!” Yuri all but screamed out, throwing her head back and forth wildly. She made some strained noises, wiggling around in pure zeal. 

Then fell over, knocked out cold. 

Aiden looked over Yoshi’s shoulder and screamed, jumping up and kneeling at Yuri’s side, fanning her with the towel, “Yuri! Are you alright!? Say something!!”

Keitaro and Hiro were tucked close together, watching the scene play out in front of them silently. A couple of other scouts who were eating lunch were watching as well, some concerned for Yuri, and others sniggering at Yuri’s implications. 

Yoshi walked over to Aiden and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a few pats. 

“It’s alright, Aiden. She’s probably just overwhelmed again. I’ll take her to her cabin and get some new clothes for me as well. You can get back to work, and be more careful next time, okay?” 

Yoshi gave him a soft smile, scooping Yuri into his arms. He took another glance at Aiden, but then turned his head away, a blush dusting his face. 

“A-And also… please put on some clothes…”

That was when Keitaro and Hiro finally noticed what was bothering them about Aiden’s appearance. His lack of clothing. The only thing he had on was an apron; a green one that matched his hair. 

Aiden looked away, a blush coming over his features as well, “O-Okay…”

Yoshi nodded and walked away, moving through the small crowd of scouts wordlessly. Aiden let out a deep sigh, looking over at the mess that had been caused. He rubbed the back of his head, his shoulders sagging. 

“I hope I don’t get fired for this…”

Hiro and Keitaro slowly walked towards him, concern written on their faces at the state of the man. 

“Hey, mister! Are you okay?” Hiro asked, making Aiden jump slightly. 

“W-What? Who?” He spun around and faced them, a smile coming to face immediately. 

“Oh, why hello you two! What can I do for ya?” 

Keitaro looked past the man at the messy floor and table, the chairs askew and fallen over. If only he had tucked his feet in, the man wouldn’t have tripped. Knowing what had happened was his fault, Keitaro felt his throat tighten with guilt. Hiro looked over in shock as Keitaro let out a few sniffs and whimpers, trying to hide the tears threatening to spill down his cheeks. 

Aiden noticed this as well, and leaned forward a bit, “E-Eh… Did I say something wrong?” 

Keitaro looked down at the floor in shame, twiddling his thumbs together, “I… I was blocking your way… that’s why you tripped…”

Aiden’s brows raised in understanding, but then immediately furrowed into a glare, “Ohh, so it’s  _ your _ fault huh?” 

Hiro bit his lip, trying to step by Keitaro’s side to defend him, but Keitaro spoke up again, “I-I’m really sorry!” 

Aiden crossed his arms with a huff, taking a step closer to Keitaro, leaning down to get eye level with him. 

“You what I do to  _ bad _ boys who mess with my work!?” 

Silence followed as Keitaro stared at the man fearfully, his lip quivering. But Aiden’s gaze didn’t hold. He instead, bit his lip, let out a snicker…

And reached up to pinch Keitaro’s cheeks.

“Owwwiee!” Keitaro yelped as Aiden pinched and shook his cheeks back and forth, erupting in laughter. 

“Hahaha! It’s not your fault at all, silly! It was just an accident! And I should’ve been more careful. I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I shouldn’t have been running with a hot bowl of soup anyway, so don’t worry about it too much, okay?” 

Aiden released Keitaro’s cheeks, the latter rubbing them softly. Hiro let out a deep sigh of relief, happy Keitaro wasn’t in trouble. Aiden chuckled, standing back up to full height, watching the two boys. He rose a brow, realizing something off about them. 

“Hmm… wait a minute… you two don’t look familiar to me at all…” He said, rubbing his chin in thought. 

Keitaro did notice that the man hadn’t been present at the feast yesterday. If he was a member of the staff, why wasn’t he there? 

“Oh! I think I know who you are! YOU MUST BE THE NEWLY HIRED HELPERS!” He cried, clapping his hands together with joy. Hiro and Keitaro reeled back at his sudden enthusiasm. 

“Whew, finally! I’ve been requesting a helper from Yoshi for quite sometime now!” He cheered, laying his hand on his chest. 

Hiro rose a brow, “Huh, what?” 

“You can start by helping me chop some vegetables and fruits for tonight’s menu! And I have a whole list of other things that need to get done-”

“W-Wait a minute!” Hiro shouted, interrupting Aiden before he flew off the handle. 

“We’re not helpers!” He crossed his arms, furrowing his brows at the man. 

Aiden rose his brow, his arms dropping to his side, “What!? Then what are you?” 

Hiro huffed, crossing his arms over his chest, “We’re new campers! We just joined yesterday.”

Aiden’s face went dark for just a moment, his eyes dropping to the floor, “That’s odd… I thought we weren’t allowed to- n-never mind.”

Keitaro opened his mouth to ask what had troubled him when-

“Anyway, welcome to Camp Buddy!” Aiden flashed a bright smile, waving the spatula that Keitaro just noticed he was holding in greeting. The brunette smiled brightly, but Hiro rose a skeptical brow at his earlier slip-up. 

“How could you have mistaken us as helpers or whatever? Isn’t it already obvious by our uniforms that we’re just scouts?” He asked, gesturing to said uniform. 

Aiden sighed, shaking his head, “Well, the staff and campers attire all looks the same to me. Whoever designed it is total bonkers.” The man let out a deep sigh, placing his hands on his hips. 

Hiro hummed in response, and quickly glanced at Keitaro, who was eagerly listening to the man prattle on. When Hiro got another whiff of the food, he also took notice of the spatula in the man’s hand. 

“So… you’re the chef of this camp?” He asked, Aiden puffing his chest out with pride. 

“Yep! Aiden Flynn at your service! It’s a pleasure to meet you both, Hiro, Keitaro!”

Keitaro stifled a giggle at the way Aiden pronounced his name. The man was definitely foreign, perhaps American? 

Hiro, however, looked at Aiden with a bit of confusion and fright, “H-How did you know our names?” 

Keitaro chuckled, poking Hiro in the chest where his name was sewn into his shirt, “It’s written on our uniforms, Hiro.”

“Oh.”

Hiro’s face stiffened, his eyes falling to the floor in embarrassment. Keitaro smiled sympathetically, giving Hiro a few pats on the back. Aiden watched as a blush came over Hiro’s face. Keitaro kept a hand on Hiro’s shoulder as he turned back to Aiden. 

“Anyway, I’m sorry about the incident, Sir Aiden,” Keitaro bowed with regret, hoping that he wouldn’t be too angry. 

Aiden rose a brow, puffing his chest out even more at the new title, “Oh-hoh~  _ Sir _ Aiden, eh? I like the sound of that!” 

Hiro looked down at Aiden once more, a question reeling in his head. He had been itching to question the man on this since their conversation began, and now, he’d had enough. 

“Umm…”

Aiden noticed the change in Hiro’s demeanor, and leaned down a bit to get eye level with him. 

“You look troubled. Is something… bothering you?” He asked, Keitaro turning to face Hiro. The brunette took notice of Hiro's concerned expression and squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. 

Hiro closed his eyes slowly, raising his arm to rub the back of his head, “I don’t mean to sound rude but…”

Hiro sucked in a deep breath. 

_ “Why the hell are you BUTT NAKED!?”  _ He all but shouted. 

Keitaro’s eyes widened, and he glanced over at Aiden, who had reeled back at Hiro’s volume. But instead of getting angry or flustered, he smirked slyly. 

“Oh~ you mean this?” He asked, grabbing the flap of his apron and starting to lift it. 

Hiro threw his hands over Keitaro’s eyes, a deep blush painting his face. 

“HEY! Don’t lift it up! People are freaking eating!” He snapped, tucking Keitaro to his side. Keitaro squirmed a bit, embarrassed at almost seeing Aiden’s privates. 

The man snorted indifferently, sticking his nose up. 

“Hey, hey! Don’t judge me! Kitchen work is super hard, you know? Buying the ingredients, doing all the prep work, cooking multiple dishes, and then serving it on time! Imagine doing ALL that work while in a cramped kitchen! You don’t know how hot it gets in there, especially during this summer season…” He defended himself by listing off his workload, crossing his arms at the end to emphasize the point. 

While Keitaro had successfully removed Hiro’s hand, Hiro hummed in agreement. 

“Well, I gotta hand it to you; that  _ is _ quite impressive,” He admitted, placing his hands on his hips. 

Aiden laughed, “You think so? If you understand, you must know your way around the kitchen!” 

Keitaro jumped up excitedly, clapping his hands enthusiastically at the chance to gush about Hiro, “OH YES! Hiro is an  _ excellent _ cook! He always makes me yummy food back at home! He makes the BEST pumpkin soup!” 

A dark blush crawled over Hiro’s face, and he tucked his head down into his hands. 

“K-Keitaro! Stop it! You’re embarrassing me!” Hiro squealed, burying his head into Keitaro’s back. 

Keitaro reached back and patted Hiro’s arm, Aiden laughing in front of them. 

“That’s awesome! Where’d you learn how to cook?” He asked, Hiro slowly pulling his head up, trying to force the blood from his head. 

“M-My mother taught me most of the things I can cook. She’s actually written a recipe book that I keep on me at all times. You can read through it if you’d like, it’s handwritten and everything!” He chirped, Aiden nodding in agreement. 

Hiro was about to continue, but he stopped himself when he realized something. 

“Wait a minute… if  _ you’re _ the cook here…”

His jaw dropped. 

“Does that mean you made the feast last night!?” 

Aiden nodded proudly, pounding his chest, “Yep! It was all me!” 

Hiro jumped forward and grabbed his hands, shaking them up and down excitedly, “I just have to tell you it was super awesome! Everything on the table was too GLORIOUS! I just couldn’t get enough of all the food!” 

A light blush appeared on Aiden’s cheeks as Hiro praised him. 

“Aww, you’re too kind! I always try to serve everyone the best dish I can cook! OH! It all makes sense now! Now wonder Yoshi asked me to cook so much food yesterday. It was for your welcome party! I’m sorry that I failed to greet you two properly yesterday. After cooking all that food, I got so tired and when I laid down to rest for a bit, I just, dozed off in the storage room,” He explained, rubbing the back of his head with embarrassment. 

Keitaro shook his head, “Don’t worry, Sir Aiden, we understand. I’m pretty sure Hiro’s dozed off after cooking too!”

Hiro blushed gently, looking down at the floor without a word. Aiden nodding in understanding, looking at Hiro for a few moments before-

“Oh! I just had a great idea! Hiro, you can come help me cook breakfast in the morning if you want! I can show you some of the recipes I know, and it will let me have a taste of your cooking as well!” 

Hiro raised his head and nodded, placing his hands on his hips, “Sounds awesome! Sign me up!” 

Aiden clapped his hands, reaching out to give Hiro a firm handshake. 

“Haha! You’re lucky to have a friend who knows how to cook, Keitaro! Come by and be our taste-tester sometimes too!” 

Keitaro smiled brightly, nodding in agreement, “Don’t need to give  _ me _ any excuses to come and taste Hiro’s food!” 

Aiden grinned, “Anyway, I have to clean up that mess; I need to get a mop and bucket and some paper towels… I’m dead if Yoshi comes back to see the floor still covered in chicken soup. If you two are hungry, just head over to the counter and scoop yourselves anything you want!” 

Keitaro nodded in agreement, “Thank you so much, Sir Aiden. Sorry again for all the trouble we may have caused!”

Aiden smiled, reaching out and patting Keitaro on the head, “It’s no problem, see ya!” 

Aiden walked off quickly, rushing back behind the counter and disappearing into the kitchen. Hiro let out a huge sigh, patting his stomach when it rumbled loudly. 

“Anyhoodle, let’s go grab our lunch, Keitaro! I’m starving!” 

“Okay~” Keitaro allowed Hiro to grab him by the hand and pull him forward, finally getting in line for food. Hiro bounced on his feet excitedly, shaking Keitaro’s hand around as they moved up through the line, the smell of the food tempting them both. 

When they finally made it to the counter, Hiro picked up heaping portions of everything he could, realizing that he head skipped breakfast that day with Yoshi and Yuri distracting them earlier that morning. 

Keitaro watched Hiro with endearment as he pranced along the counter-side, filling his plate to the brim. Keitaro only picked up a few things, not wanting to upset his stomach at all. When he was finished getting his food, he looked up to see Hiro had already claimed a spot at a table, waving him over wildly. 

Keitaro smiled brightly and skipped over to the table, plopping himself down next to Hiro. The tangerine-haired boy was already digging into his food, seemingly having more appreciation for it now that he knew who had cooked it. 

“Mmm~ This is delicious!” He sighed, taking a bite of his sandwich. 

Keitaro nodded, picking his own sandwich up, “It’s hard to believe that Sir Aiden cooked all that food for everyone all by himself. I’d be dead at the end every day just thinking about it!”

Hiro nodded in agreement, “I know right?! He’s got real skills! I hope I can get that efficient at cooking one day! My mom would be so proud!” 

Keitaro sighed, glancing back at the table where the mess had occurred, “I still feel guilty that he’s the only one who had to clear up that soup. I should’ve helped him, I was still partially responsible, accident or no!”

Hiro hummed, taking a sip of his drink before a thought occurred to him. Why  _ did _ Aiden clean that mess? He was the one who made it, but wasn’t he the chef? Shouldn’t they have a janitor or something of that nature? He decided to voice this concern to Keitaro. 

“Shouldn’t someone else be in charge of cleaning? Why did Aiden have to do it? Usually they’d go and get a cleaner when someone makes a mess like that…” 

Keitaro puffed out his lip in thought, scratching his cheek, “Ummm… he did mention something about new helpers. Maybe that’s what he meant?” 

Hiro was about to answer before a new voice spoke up behind them. 

“Hi!”

Hiro and Keitaro turned around to see Natsumi walking over with a plate of food. 

“Sorry if I’m late. I did want to take your offer up on lunch earlier, but I didn’t want to be late with my packing. Is it okay if I still join you?” 

Keitaro shook his head vigorously, gesturing to the other side of the table. 

“Please do, Natsumi!”

The blunette situated himself onto the bench, letting a sigh escape from his chest. 

“Anything interesting happen before I arrived?” He asked, opening the packaging on his plastic fork. 

“We just met Sir Aiden, actually! I kinda… messed up his work a bit on accident…” Keitaro twiddled his thumbs together nervously, but Natsumi waved it off.

“Ah! That’s right, I forgot to introduce him to you two yesterday! He’s always super busy with all his chores around the camp. And don’t worry too much about what might have happened, Keitaro. Just last week I accidentally umm… might have used dish detergent instead of laundry detergent and turned all the sheets blue. He brushed it off and fixed the sheets, but I still feel guilty about it. He’s not one to hold a grudge,” Natsumi explained, turning a bright pink at admitting to the mistake. 

“His chores?” Hiro raised a brow in curiosity, and Natsumi was quick to answer. 

“Mister or… you addressed him as, Sir Aiden? Keitaro? He’s a helper here at Camp Buddy! We consider him one of the scoutmaster’s assistants, though!”

Keitaro and Hiro glanced at each other with uncertainty. 

“A… A helper? I thought he was the chef?” 

Natsumi nodded, “He’s the chef, yes. But that’s just one of his tasks! He’s in charge of maintenance, healthcare, gardening, and even physical education!”

Hiro’s jaw dropped, “Whoa! That’s a lot of stuff! Are we talking about just one Aiden? I mean, he just told us that he does all the kitchen work by himself. And that alone is supposed to take the ENTIRE day!” 

Natsumi’s face fell, as if guilty about the fact. 

“I’m not sure myself how he manages to do it all… even Scoutmaster Yoshi is concerned about how much he does here. But, he’s one of my inspirations! He’s such a hard worker that everyone can look up to!” Natsumi patted his chest a few times, his torso forward as if proud. 

Keitaro’s eyes sparkled with amazement, his respect for the man growing stronger, “That’s amazing!!!”

Natsumi nodded enthusiastically, “It is, isn’t it? When he lets us, we do help him from time to time. I often help with the laundry, as I stated earlier.”

Hiro rubbed the back of his head, his eyes falling to the floor, “Now I kinda feel bad for him. I mean, just look at this mess hall, it’s chock full of campers to feed. I can’t imagine being able to keep up with all that work, especially by myself!” 

Keitaro nodded in agreement, glancing to the spot where the soup spilled. A pang of guilt tugged at his heart, but before he could respond to Hiro, he saw a pair of shoes cross over it. 

When he looked up, he saw Hunter carrying a tray of food, looking around the mess hall nervously. 

“Hey, it’s Hunter!” Keitaro announced, drawing the attention of Natsumi and Hiro. The two looked over to see Hunter just standing in between tables with his food, brows furrowed and shifting nervously on his feet. 

“Why is he just standing there?” Hiro asked, Natsumi leaned over to get a look. 

“Maybe he’s looking for a table with a vacant seat?” 

Keitaro smiled, his heart pounding in his chest at the thought of having the gentle blonde join them. He threw his hand into the air and waved it spastically, “Hunter!” 

The blue-eyed boy turned to face him, his eyes widening in shock. He hesitated for a few moments before stepping through the crowd towards them, weaving through and around other campers. When he got close to the table, Keitaro put his hand down. 

“We have some space left, wanna sit with us?” He offered, patting the bench. 

“Oh… th-thank you, Keitaro…” He murmured, a blush dusting over his pale cheeks. 

“I hope you don’t mind me sharing a table with you guys,” He added, his eyes dropping to the floor. Keitaro shook his head, his hair flipping back and forth. 

“It’s no problem at all! Here, sit beside me!” He patted the seat next to him, albeit the small space. 

Hiro rose a brow, pointing across the table towards Natsumi, “There’s a bigger space next to Natsumi.”

Natsumi grinned, scooting a bit and patting the bench, “Come here, Hunter! It’s less cramped!” 

Hunter smiled, placing his food down on the table, “O-Okay…”

Hunter slowly sat down, settling into the seat next to Natsumi. Keitaro smiled brightly, clapping his hands together happily. Now only if Yoichi were here, then his afternoon would be complete!

Hiro coughed into his hand, turning to Keitaro to restart their conversation, “By the way, Keitaro; are you excited for tomorrow?”

Keitaro whirled around and grabbed Hiro’s hands, “SO excited! It’s going to be our very first camping trip outdoors! How can I not be!? I need to make sure the batteries on my camera are fully charged so that I can take pictures of all sorts of stuff!” 

Hiro blushed darkly as Keitaro held his hands and shook them excitedly, while Hunter looked up from his food with interest. 

“You like photography, Keitaro?” He asked, the brunette nodding with sparkling eyes. 

Hiro cleared his throat, flashing a cheeky grin, “He LOVES it! You should see his collection!”

Hunter smiled, “So that’s why Keitaro always brings a camera with him. I think it’s a neat hobby.”

Keitaro’s cheeks warmed at the compliment, and he gave a tiny bow with his head, “Thank you! Do you have any hobbies, Hunter?” 

Hunter smiled, his eyes dropping to his hands as he twiddled his thumbs, “Well, I like reading books of course. But, I also dra-”

“HEY, KEITARO! Show us some of the pictures you’ve taken so far!” Hiro suddenly yelled, interrupting Hunter. Before Keitaro could ask Hunter to continue, Natsumi spoke up as well, “Oh! Interesting! I’d love to see them as well!”

Keitaro looked over at Hunter, who smiled at him almost tenderly, silently telling him it was okay. Returning the smile, Keitaro shook his head at the other two, lifting his camera into his hands. 

“I don’t carry my photos around with me. I keep them all in my bag at the cabin, so that they don’t get-”

“HEY! NEWBLOODS!”

Keitaro jumped and felt a shiver run up his spine at the sound of Yoichi’s booming voice. He spun around to see the violette marching towards them, a cocky grin on his face. 

“Whatchu got there?” He asked, leaning down to see Keitaro’s hands. 

“Oh, Yochi! Perfect timing! We were just talking about Keitaro’s camera!” Natsumi answered. 

Yochi cocked a brow, stepping behind Keitaro and plucking the camera out of his hands, the strap coming off from around his neck. Keitaro sat in shock, unable to process what happened until Hiro snapped at Yoichi. 

“Hey! Give the back to Keitaro!” 

Yoichi rolled his eyes, bending his torso to the side when Hiro swiped at him, “Geez, Torch-head; I just wanna look!” 

Keitaro looked between the two and pursed his lips, wanting to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand. 

“It’s okay, Hiro, he can borrow it. But, Yoichi…”

The fuchsia-eyed boy looked down at him. 

“I kindly ask that you ask for permission next time. That camera means a lot to me, and I don’t want it to get damaged. Do that for me, and you can do whatever this time, okay?” He asked, smiling up at him. 

Yoichi pursed his lips, looking down at the camera for a few moments, before sticking his nose up, his cheeks tinted pink. 

“Sure… whatever…”

Keitaro smiled, reaching behind him to place a hand on Hiro’s shoulder, calming the boy silently.

Hiro sighed, crossing his arms and huffing, Natsumi patting his other shoulder. 

“So, how do you work this stupid thing, anyway?” Yoichi asked, turning it around in his hands. 

Hiro’s ear twitched, and a savage grin crept on his face, seeing an opportunity. 

“Hehehe, never seen a camera before? Oh yeah, there aren’t any in the wild.”

Yoichi snorted, rolling his eyes at the comment, “Shut it, Torch-head. I’m talking to Keitaro, not you.”

Hiro snarled, about to snap back before Keitaro held up his hands, “Calm down, both of you.”

He turned back to Yoichi, “It’s called an instant camera. It instantly prints out pictures of whatever you capture. Here, lemme show you,” He held out his hands, Yoichi handing back the camera. 

Keitaro found the strap back over his neck and lifted the camera into his hands. 

“You just have to point the lens at anything you want to take a picture up… like this.”

He pointed the camera at Yoichi, the boy wincing in turn. 

“And press the big button on the top to take a photo!” 

Keitaro pressed the button and the flash went off, the bright light illuminating Yoichi’s face briefly. The boy closed his eyes at the sudden brightness, and he covered his face. 

“KHH! Stupid! You tryna blind me or somethin’!?” He rubbed his tender eyes, Keitaro chuckling in response. 

“Haha! I’m sorry!” Keitaro reached out and patted his shoulder. 

The camera whistled and shuttered, a piece of film slowly filing out of the bottom of the camera. 

“Oh, look, it’s printing already!” Hunter cried, pointing at the camera. 

Natsumi let out an ‘oh’ sound, looking down underneath it, “So, it’s ‘that’ type of camera!”

Hiro clapped his hands as Keitaro pulled the picture out, fanning it a bit so that the picture would settle. 

“Ohh! I wanna see!” 

Keitaro held up the picture as the image came into view…

And snorted. 

Yoichi was mid-blink, and his lip was curled back, flashing his teeth as a result of the flash. Keitaro put his head down and tried to stifle his laughter, but the rest of the group didn’t hold back. 

“Haha! You look funny, Yoichi,” Natsumi chuckled, pointing at the image as if telling him to look. 

Hiro roared with laughter, throwing himself into Keitaro’s side, “Yeah, you look like a confused doofus! HAHAHA!” 

Hunter only giggled, trying to compose himself. 

Yoichi’s face went red with embarrassment as Keitaro showed him the photo, “Hey!”

Keitaro sucked in a deep breath, smiling down at the image. 

“I hope you don’t mind if I keep this, Yoichi.” He asked, looking down at the picture. 

Yoichi raised a brow, taking another glance at the picture, “Why would you want that?” 

Keitaro hummed, leaning back a bit, “Well, film is expensive. Besides, it’ll make a  _ really _ nice addition to my collection. So…”

Yoichi looked down to his side, closing his eyes, “S-Sure, do whatever you want with it.”

Keitaro let out a small squeal, hugging the photo to his chest, “Thank you, Yoichi!” 

Hiro’s arms dropped, and he moved up to see Keitaro better, “Hey, Keitaro! How come you never take pictures of me!?” 

Keitaro smiled, reaching up to pat Hiro’s head. Yoichi burst out laughing, finally sitting down next to Keitaro and leaning back on the table, “Probably because you’re annoying!”

“No, I’m not!” Hiro snapped, grabbing Keitaro’s wrist and pulling his hand closer, pouting at the flurry of insults. 

Keitaro rose a brow, patting his shoulder, “What are you saying, Hiro? I have a lot of pictures of you!”

Hiro huffed, crossing his arms like a scolded toddler, “I can’t believe I have to share you collection with that  _ jungle boy _ !” 

Hunter smiled brightly, leaning over the table to take another glance at the picture in Keitaro’s hand, “This seems like such an interesting hobby, Keitaro! I would love to see your photo collection someday! What do you usually take pictures of?”

Keitaro puffed out his lips in thought, “Well, I’m no professional at it; this is actually my first camera. It was a birthday gift from my sister. And I usually just capture photos of the fun times I get to spend with my friends. It’s a good way to preserve my memories so that I can look back on them later in life!”

Hunter and Natsumi both smiled fondly at Keitaro, the elder camper about to ask about Keitaro’s sister; but the sound of Yoichi swinging his fist across the back of Hiro’s head caught them off guard.

“Owww! What was that for?!” Hiro snapped, jumping up from his seat. Yoichi sneered, crossing his arms and leaning back against the table. 

“That’s for calling me jungle boy.”

Natsumi chuckled, leaning his head on his hand, “I think the nickname suits you, Yoichi!”

Hiro crossed his arms proudly, “I know right!” 

Yoichi whirled around, glaring daggers at the bluenette, “Oi! Shut yer mouth, Mr. Perfect! Ghnn!” 

While Yoichi snarled at the table, Keitaro felt a warmth bubble up in his chest. He looked around the table, seeing Hunter and Natsumi engaged in a conversation and Hiro digging into his food. Yoichi was still pouting, but the sight of seeing all the new people he’d met enjoying themselves made Keitaro’s heart flutter, and he let out a tender laugh. 

Yoichi rose his head, brows furrowed in anger, “Hey! What are you laughing at!?”

Keitaro leaned back and shook his hands, understanding that Yoichi might have thought he was laughing at him, “I’m just really happy! I didn’t think I was gonna be able to have lunch with all of you; and yet, here we are now! I’m really having fun with you all!”

The four boys all felt a rush of heat in their cheeks at Keitaro’s cheesy, yet heartfelt compliment towards them all. They all exchanged looks of disbelief, wondering how he could be this sweet towards them, but Natsumi decided to voice their collective inner thought. 

“You really are something, Keitaro.”

The brunette smiled, looking down at his food embarrassingly. 

Hiro scarfed down the rest of his food, taking a glance over at the clock on the wall. It was just a little after noon, and he realized they hadn’t even begun to pack their things for the camping trip. 

Hiro reached up and grabbed Keitaro’s shoulder, shaking it gently. 

“Keitaro! We still need to prepare our stuff! Natsumi and Hunter are already down with theirs!” He exclaimed, Keitaro’s eyes widening in realization. 

Yoichi scoffed, leaning on the table, “Hmph, you don’t need any of that stuff! Who needs to pack a bag when you already have the natural instincts to survive in the wild?”

Hiro rose a skeptical brow, “Yeah, this coming from the guy who was probably  _ born _ in the wild.”

“ _ That’s it, Torch-Head! You’re gonna get it!” _ Yoichi jumped from the bench, his fists clenched tightly. Hiro leapt from his own seat and broke into a run. 

“HAHAHA! Catch me if you can~!” 

Yoichi smirked, cracking his knuckles, “Heh! You asked for it ya little shit!”

He shifted his weight to one foot and sprang forward. Hiro laughed gleefully as the larger scout pursued him. He wound around a few of the tables before ducking towards the door, Yoichi hot on his heels.

Natsumi watched the scene with interest as they disappeared from the mess hall, his hand on his chin.

“Huh… for the first time, I’m not sure if Yoichi was seriously mad, or just playing around. I guess Hiro’s attitude can keep up with Yoichi’s…”

Keitaro smiled, looking over his shoulder at the door. He was glad Hiro had found someone as energetic, if not more so, then him. He needed someone to burn that energy with. 

“Oh! Keitaro, you should go and get your bag prepared! We don’t want Scoutmaster Yoshi thinking you’re slacking off!” Natsumi cried, clapping his hands together urgently.. 

Hunter reached into one of his breast pockets and pulled out a small piece of paper, holding it out tentatively towards Keitaro.

“Umm… here’s a checklist of what you need in case you have any trouble remembering what to bring.”

Keitaro took the list gratefully, flashing a bright smile at the blonde, “This is so helpful! Thank you so much, Hunter!”

Hunter flushed a dark red, turning away to try and hide his embarrassed face, “Y-You’re welcome…” 

Keitaro stepped up from the bench, gathering the scraps of his food onto his tray. He tucked his tray underneath his arm and waved. 

“Alrighty then, I’ll go back to the cabin and start packing! Thanks for joining me for lunch, I really appreciate it!” 

With that, Keitaro skipped away, tossing his trash and placing his tray on the counter to be picked up and cleaned later. When he stepped outside, he greeted the warmth of the sun happily, stretching his arms up high. He scanned the grounds, wondering if Hiro and Yoichi were still running around. He didn’t see them, and figured they were off somewhere else chasing each other. Keitaro sighed blissfully, beginning his walk over to their cabin. 

Keitaro stuffed his hands in his pockets as he walked through the grounds, enjoying the light breeze rolled over his shoulders. As he walked, his thoughts began to run, wondering about the relationship between Hiro and Yoichi. 

_ “I can’t really tell if Hiro is really friends with Yoichi or not. And seeing Natsumi and Hunter smile like that, I feel like this is a great start for all of us to get closer with each other!” _

A gentle blush dusted his cheeks. 

_ “I’m gonna do my best to keep it this way!” _

Keitaro’s smile widened as he approached the door to their cabin. When he opened the door, he was greeted with the sight of Hiro hiding behind his bed with Yoichi staring him down on the opposite side. 

“Oh! You two are already here!”

Yoichi scoffed, plopping himself down on Hiro’s bed, “Well, Torch-head here headed straight for the cabin. He even tried to lock me out.”

Hiro snorted, pointing an accusing finger at him, “Because you’re so noisy! Who yells all over the campgrounds when you’re playing chase with someone?”

Yoichi only sniggered, leaning back on his hands, “Hehe, just admit it! You got all scared and tried to hide here! You’re just as boring as everybody here after all!”

Hiro groaned, crawling across the floor and latching onto Keitaro’s leg, “Uggghhh… I don’t feel like talking to him anymore, Keitaro. Make him go awayyyyy…”

Keitaro laughed, patting Hiro’s head sympathetically, “It’s time to prepare our stuff, anyway. It’s already way past noon and the scoutmasters will be checking if we’re prepared or not-” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out the list Hunter gave him, “-Hunter gave me a checklist of what to bring. I think it might be useful.”

Keitaro opened the list and read over it, Hiro and Yoichi leaning over his shoulders to read it as well. As they read through the list, Yoichi rose a brow in confusion. 

“Tissue? Conditioner? Cologne? Where does this guy think we’re going; a castle?”

Hiro pursed his lips, leaning back and nodding his head, “I hate to say it, but I have to agree with Yoichi. I don’t think we need all this stuff, Keitaro.”

Keitaro pursed his lips, placing the list down on his bed, “W-Well… there are some important stuff on this list. I guess we can just bring what we need.”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, stuffing his hands in his pockets, “Count me out. I’m all set.”

Yoichi spun on his heel and walked away, exited the cabin with a huff. Hiro shook his head, his hands settling on his hips. 

“Is he always this annoying?”

Keitaro patted Hiro’s back, “A-Anyway, let’s start packing our stuff. We don’t want to be caught empty-handed on our first camp activity, Hiro!”

Hiro nodded, skipping over to his bed and pulling his bag out from underneath it. He threw onto the duvet and unzipped it, holding it open and staring at it for a few moments. He then turned to Keitaro with a shy smile on his face. 

“Sooo… what should we bring?”

Keitaro hummed, looking down at the list, then at the door, then to the ceiling. He wasn’t sure what to bring himself, wanting to be prepared, but not bringing too much that it weighed his bag down. 

“Hmm, we want to be prepared, but not bring too much that causes problems for us. I think we pack the basics like insect repellent, a guide, extra clothes, protein-packed snacks, etc; but we should also be prepared to have to use our own instincts should things go awry…”

Hiro hummed, nodding in understanding, a smile breaking on his face. 

“I like the sound of that, a bit of everything, but not too much. The less I have to pack the happier I’ll be! Also snacks sound great!” 

Keitaro chuckled as Hiro rushed over to his locker to grab his things. Keitaro smiled, glad that taking everyone’s advice came in handy. When he started to pack his bag, he looked up the door, remembering how Yoichi said he wasn’t going to pack anything. His brows furrowed in concern. If Yoichi showed up to Scoutmaster Yoshi empty-handed, he’d certainly get in trouble. 

While Yoichi  _ did _ have a bit of an attitude, Keitaro didn’t want to see his fellow cabin-mate getting scolded. But Yoichi refused to pack his things…

Then, a light-bulb went off in his head. 

Smiling brightly, Keitaro made sure Hiro was pre-occupied before he yanked out an extra bag and rushed out of the cabin. 

About an hour passed by the time Natsumi, Yoichi, and Hunter had all returned, each of them going over their supplies. 

Keitaro crossed his arms and puffed his chest with pride, looking down at his neatly packed bag. 

Natsumi was carefully organizing his for what seemed to be the third time, pulling out and placing back in an obscene amount of things before he turned to Keitaro. 

“Keitaro, are you finished? Scoutmaster Yoshi will be gathering us shortly.”

Keitaro nodded, patting his bag, “Yep! Extra clothes, insect repellent, a first aid kit, a bottle of water, a couple of energy bars! I’m all set!” 

Hiro held his bag proudly, waving it around for all to see, “I’m all prepared too!”

Hunter was busy trying to zip up his overly stuffed bag, when he noticed Yoichi just leaning against the bed frame, nothing in his hands. 

“Yoichi? What about you? You didn’t pack anything…”

Yoichi snarled, curling his lip back at the blonde, “Since when did you start caring?”

Hunter winced, curling back into himself nervously. 

Yoichi rolled his eyes, throwing his arms behind his head, “But meh~! I don’t care about packing. I don’t need any of that fancy stuff!”

Hunter finally zipped his back up, looking at the larger scout nervously, “A-Are you sure it’s okay?” 

Hiro walked over and patted Hunter on the shoulder, drawing his attention away from Yoichi, “Just leave him be, Hunter! We aren’t the ones getting in trouble, so just let him get scolded!”

Keitaro let a half-smile crept onto his face. He stuck his foot under his bed and hooked it on something. When he pulled it out, he revealed a second, fully packed bag at the ready. He lifted it up by one of it’s straps and held it out to Yoichi. 

“Here you go, Yoichi!”

Yoichi’s eyes popped open, looking at the bag with confusion, “Wh… What’s this?”

“You’re things. I packed them for you!”

Yoichi’s jaw dropped as he stared at the beg silently. Natsumi chuckled, looking over at Yoichi slyly, “I guess Keitaro knew you had no plans of packing and decided to do it for you~.

Yoichi was at a loss for words, shakily reaching out and taking the bag, “I… uh… t-tha…” 

Before he could finish, a dark blush illuminated his cheeks. He could no longer talk, staring at the bag with a slack-jaw. 

Hiro whirled around and faced Keitaro, his eyes wide in disbelief. 

“What!? Keitaro how could you!? You can’t just let him off the hook like that!”

Keitaro waved him off, “It’s okay Hiro, I had some spare time!”

Hiro pouted, crossing his arms, “That’s not fair!”

Keitaro shook his head, reaching into his nightstand and pulling out a small bag, “Don’t worry, I’ve got something for you too! I grabbed this from the mess hall earlier while you were busy packing. I know it’s your favorite!”

Keitaro holds the orange bag of chips, and Hiro’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.

“Woooow! Cheezie-chips!? Okay, I forgive you~” Hiro leapt onto Keitaro, locking him in a hug before taking the chips gleefully and ripping it open. 

Hunter watched with interest as Hiro began eating the chips, “That was fast…” 

Natsumi checked his watch and gasped, suddenly flailing his arms towards the door, “We really need to head out, guys! Scoutmaster Yoshi must already be waiting outside!”

Keitaro nodded, slinging his bag over his shoulders. He watched as everyone, save Yoichi, was putting on their bags and making their way to the door. Keitaro took a few tentative steps towards the violette, waving his hand in front of him. 

“Umm… Yoichi? Can you hear me-”

“Keitaro! Come on!”

Keitaro stood up at the sound of Hiro’s voice and walked away, taking one last worried glance at Yoichi before leaving the cabin. He still didn’t move, and Keitaro let out a sigh of defeat. He skipped off after the rest of his cabin mates, welcoming the gentleness of the evening sky. 

He hoped down the stairs, going to stand in-between Natsumi and Hunter. He placed his bag on the ground and stood up, looking over at Natsumi with a readied look. 

Natsumi smiled, looking at Hunter and Hiro’s bags before speaking, “Now, we wait for the scoutmasters to call us.”

Hunter rose a hand, “But… Yoichi’s still inside.” 

Keitaro breathed a sigh of relief. So he wasn’t the only one who noticed his odd behavior.

Hiro hummed, rubbing his chin in thought as he glanced back at their cabin, “What happened to him? He just froze and got all quiet when you gave him that bag, Keitaro.”

Keitaro sighed, shrugging in response, “Well, at least we’re all ready for the scoutmasters’ inspection now-”

**_“AMATEURS!”_ **

Keitaro jumped in fright when a harsh, bold voice snapped at them. 

He turned his head, and felt his heart stop in what he couldn’t tell was fright or attraction. A scout was marching towards them, a cocky grin plastered on his face, and he looked  _ anything _ but friendly. He had stark red hair that was fixed up with golden sides and bangs. To match his hair were ferocious red eyes that seemed to bore into Keitaro’s very soul. 

Flanking this scout were two others, and they had the same unfriendly vibes to them. On his right, a small, gangly boy with green, with bowl-cut hair and large, round glasses. On his left, a slender boy with a very flamboyant nature about his walk. He had curly pink hair that bounced as he walked, and his hand was up in a very condescending way. 

Keitaro his heart hammer at his chest when they approached, scared at their aggressive stature. They stopped a good meter away, and the red-haired scout sneered, looking directly at him. 

“Ohh~, so you’re that new  _ goody-two-shoes _ everyone’s talking about?”

Keitaro bit his lip. 

“What’s so special about you?” The scout raised a red, notched brow, his grin fading into a harsh scowl, “It took you so long to prepare something so simple as a  _ campout bag _ .”

The scout stepped forward, “As for me, the great  _ Taiga Akatora _ , finished preparing way ahead of you slowpokes!”

Natsumi’s lips tightened with concern, “That’s… great, Taiga. But this is not a competition…”

The scout, Taiga as Keitaro learned, rolled his eyes, “No matter, it just proves that I’m better than all of you combined! Isn’t that right, Eduard?”

Taiga turned towards the pink-haired boy, who nodded in response, “Totally~! That  _ feces _ -colored-haired guy is sooo not fabulous! It’s no doubt that you are like, way better than HE is. And oh my god. Like those clothes, just really need to go. Stat!”

Hunter rose a brow, tentatively stepping forward, “But aren’t we already wearing the same uniforms…?”

The pink-haired scout, or Eduard, scoffed and rolled his eyes, “Oh my god! Sheesh! I’m talking about his scarf,  _ doofus _ ! Seriously?  _ Green? _ Green is NOT a creative color! Right,  _ Lee? _ ”

The boy with the glasses responded to his name, fixing his glasses, “Yes, that is indeed accurate, and according to my calculations, there is nothing to be threatened about this new camper.”

Lee locked eyes with Keitaro, narrowing them in thought, “For the physical and mental capabilities of that… Keitaro, was it? It’s no doubt that  _ yours _ is far more superior, Taiga!”

Before they could go on, Hiro had finally snapped. He stepped in-between them and Keitaro, his lip curled bag in a savage like growl, “HEY! Just who do you think you are!?”

Taiga only sneered, raising a brow, “Oh! You must be his sidekick, huh? Must be hard living under his shadow all the time~.”

“What…?!” Hiro stepped back, racking his brain to find a comeback, but it fell dead on his tongue. Natsumi stepped forward instead, his chest out as if trying to establish an air of authority. 

“That’s enough, Taiga! That’s NOT the way to greet our new members!”

Taiga only rolled his eyes, scratching behind his ear with indifference, “Psh! So what if they’re new here? Home come they get special treatment from everyone? Especially that fucking  _ Keitaro.” _

Taiga looked through Natsumi and Hiro and stared right at Keitaro, who winced in return. He reached up and grabbed Hiro’s shirt nervously, unsure of how to combat the nasty behavior towards him. 

“It seems everyone’s taken a predilection to him already. He hasn’t even done anything near exemplary. Not according to my standards at least,” Lee wondered aloud, looking over Keitaro once more. Eduard in turn rolled his eyes, “Oh my god. I know right? I don’t get why everyone’s so extra nice to him! It’s so, eww!”

Hiro had reared up angrily, Natsumi actually reaching out to grab his shoulders so that he wouldn’t start a fight. 

“How DARE you badmouth, Keitaro! You don’t even KNOW him!”

Taiga only laughed, placing his hands on his hips, “What are you gonna do? Cry?”

Hiro snarled, “Natsumi, if this guy doesn’t stop, I’m actually going to punch him!”

Taiga sneered, “Go ahead. See what happens~”

Natsumi stepped in-between Hiro and Taiga, his face churned into a hard glare. He'd had enough.

"Taiga, please stop provoking us into unnecessary fights. I will call Scoutmaster Yoshi if I have to!" 

Eduardo scoffed, stepping forward to get into the bluenette's face, or as close as he could with their noticeable height difference.

"How DARE you talk back to Taiga like that! You should-"

"The only reason I have resorted to this tone is because you three are behaving like  _ children!  _ It wouldn't hurt you to be a little nicer to us. We've done nothing to warrant this kind of treatment!" Natsumi took a step forward, causing Eduardo to scramble back behind Taiga. Keitaro couldn't help but crack a smile at how proudly he was defending them, putting his foot down on the matter.

Taiga only growled, his eyes cast off to the side.

"I wouldn't be caught dead hanging out with you people. Right guys?" 

When Taiga demanded confirmation, his two lackeys nodded in unison. 

"Totally! They have,  _ no _ , sense fashion at all!" Eduard snarked, turning his nose up in disgust. Lee nodded in agreement, fixing his glasses arrogantly.

"And to add insult to injury, just by looking at them, I can conclude  _ hanging out _ with them will do nothing but lower our IQs."

Taiga roared with laughter, grinning savagely at Keitaro, "That's right, hahaha-"

**_"SAY ONE MORE THING ABOUT KEITARO AND I SWEAR, IT'LL BE THE LAST THING YOU EVER DO!!!"_ **

Everyone jumped at the sound of Yoichi's booming voice. Suddenly, the large scout came in-between Taiga and the others, seemingly from out of nowhere. Keitaro had never seen Yoichi so angry. He looked two seconds away from tearing Taiga's throat out!

Taiga seemed unaffected by Yoichi's sudden entrance, only shaking his head in disappointment.

"You know, we could've been best buds Yoichi. But you chose to hang out with these losers instead," he sighed.

Yoichi snarled, stepping up and getting right in Taiga's face, "Yeah, I Know they're losers. But they're  _ MY _ losers! So shut yer trap!"

Taiga growled, pushing his forehead against Yoichi's in a threatening manner.

"Oh yeah?!"

Yoichi pulled his fists back.

"YEAH!"

Natsumi was about to step forward and intervene, wanting to prevent any potential violence. Hunter had taken shelter behind Keitaro at the escalating situation, and Hiro looked ready to join Yoichi in the fight. 

"TAIGA! YOICHI! What is going on here!?" 

They all turned to see Yoshi advancing on then, his normally kind expression shifted to a stern, disappointed stare.

Taiga pulled away immediately, turning his back on Yoichi.

"Tch. Come on guys!" 

Taiga took a few steps forward, Eduard and Lee flanking his sides once more.

Before he was gone completely, Taiga turned to look over his shoulder, and stared directly at Keitaro.

The two locked eyes, staring at each silently.

Keitaro noticed something… odd, in the way Taiga was looking at him. It was full of distrust and anger, but also…

Pain? 

It was only for a second, but Keitaro saw it. The flash of hurt in his eyes. 

But before he could do anything, Taiga stuck his nose up, and walked away.

"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE RUNT!" Yoichi looked ready to chase after him, tearing up angrily. But Yoshi grabbed his shoulder, pulling the wild scout back.

"Yoichi, don't you go starting trouble again! This is not how a scout should act!" Yoshi snapped sternly.

Yoichi whirled around, pointing at Taiga wildly, "But they-"

“No buts! Remember the first rule of the Buddy Law? You can;t just go around charging at people like that! But never fear! For I, your scoutmaster will guide you towards becoming a more respectful and kind-hearted camper!”

The five all stood in awe as Yoshi descended once more into a long speech towards Yoichi, who slumped over in response. 

“Scouts never grouse at hardships! Neither should they bicker at each other, nor resort to violence during any and all congenial conversations! Everyone should exchange kindness with one another. Extend a helping hand to those who are in need. Be thoughtful and sincere to your peers! Only through these guidelines can lifetime bonds be created-”

Yoichi sighed heavily, stuffing his hands in his pockets and stomping off, returning to their cabin. 

“‘The energy of the mind is the essence of life’ as the wise Aristotle said!”

“Scoutmaster Yoshi…” Natsumi raised his hand, trying to get Yoshi’s attention, since he seemed to had not noticed Yoichi wander off. 

“In these types of situations, one must be aware of your surroundings and-”

“Y-Yoichi already left…” Natsumi spoke up once more, this time catching Yoshi’s attention. The man straightened up, looking around as if trying to find Yoichi. 

“Oh. If that’s the case... it’s time to check your packing assignments.”

Keitaro placed his bag on the ground, standing silently as Yoshi began looking through each bag, starting with Hiro. 

Keitaro turned to face the sky, taking a deep breath in. He held his inhale for a few moments, before gently exhaling to try and alleviate the stress of the day. Everything had gone smoothly up until then. Well, mostly smoothly. Yuri’s strange hobbies, their almost-disastrous meeting with Aiden, and Taiga and his friends... 

Keitaro frowned when he thought of Taiga. It was his first meeting with the red-eyed camper, and he seemed to have disliked him, hated him even. What had he done to upset them? They seemed to talk about how the other campers had treated him. Was he being treated differently than others? Keitaro hadn’t noticed, but his cabin mates  _ did _ seem rather lenient with him. Scoutmaster Yoshi let him keep his camera, despite it being against the rules. Natsumi had let his guard down to him. Hunter spoke up around him. And even Yoichi seemed tamer around him. Hiro spoiled him, but with their long-time friendship, that behavior was normal. 

Was this attention he was receiving… upsetting Taiga? If so… why? Keitaro racked his brain trying to piece together a theory, wondering how he could no longer upset the scout. 

“Keitaro, your bag please?”

Keitaro jumped when he heard Yoshi. He looked forward to see him standing a few feet from him, and he quickly handed his bag to him. Yoshi began to check it's contents, and started making comments on how well-prepared he was. 

But Keitaro had slipped back into his thoughts once more, the sound of Yoshi’s voice falling deaf on his ears. 

He was certainly upset with how Taiga had treated him. Blatant disrespect and anger from someone he barely knew, for just existing it seemed. Doing nothing wrong, trying your best to please, only for it to be thrown back in your face. 

Unfortunately, it was a feeling Keitaro knew all too well. 

“Keitaro?” 

Yoshi reached out and tapped Keitaro on the shoulder, who jumped in fright. The other three turned to Keitaro and stared at him with concern at his odd behavior. 

“Are you alright? You seemed to be zoned out,” Yoshi asked, handing him his bag. 

But Keitaro flashed the best fake-smile he could, shaking his head at the notion, “I’m fine Scoutmaster Yoshi! Just a bit tired, that’s all!”

Thankfully, Yoshi seemed to believe him. He nodded in understanding, and clapped his hands together. 

“Well boys, I’m quite impressed with your bags! You all are dismissed for the night. Get a good night’s sleep, and I’ll see you bright and early for our exciting hike!” 

The four thanked him and scooped up their bags, leaving the courtyard to return to their cabin for the night. 

Hiro chattered excitedly about the concept of roasting marshmallows, while Hunter was discussing his interest in some of the wildlife they’d see with Natsumi. 

Keitaro kept his head low, remaining quiet the whole walk. When they reached the cabin, he slipped inside and went to change into his sleeping clothes, feeling completely worn out from the day. 

He heard Yoichi start talking to the others, and Natsumi congratulated him since Yoshi had checked Yoichi’s bag as well and gave him a passing.

Keitaro walked through the cabin and sat down on his bed, leaning back against the bed frame. 

Hiro and Natsumi watched him silently, noticing the brunette’s off silence. 

“Uhh…”

Hiro held up a hand, trying to find the right way to approach Keitaro. 

“Keitaro?” Natsumi whispered his name, but Keitaro didn’t notice him. Hiro huffed. 

“Keitaro!”

“Ahh! Ehh! What?” Keitaro jumped when Hiro yelled his name, whirling to face him. He noticed that Hiro and Natsumi were also in their pajamas, and were sitting on Hiro’s bed with concerned faces. 

“Whoa, you were really spacing out on us! What’s wrong?” Hiro asked, leaning forward. Keitaro shook his head, smiling at him weakly. 

“N-Nothin! I’m fine, Hiro.”

Hiro frowned, crossing his arms and shaking his head in disappointment, “You’re a bad liar, Keitaro. I know something’s bothering you.”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, smiling at him reassuringly, “Come on, you can tell us!” 

Keitaro sighed in defeat, looking down at his hands nervously. He didn’t like others worrying about him, it made him uneasy. Made him think about back then... 

Hiro and Natsumi patted the seat in-between them, beckoning Keitaro to sit with them. 

He sighed, standing up and walking over to them, plopping himself down between them. He looked at his lap and started twiddling his thumbs.

“W-Well… it’s about what happened before.”

Natsumi let out a small ‘oh’, looking down at the floor, “You mean Taiga and his friends?”

Hiro sighed, leaning back on his hands, “Well, it was one heck on an intro…”

Natsumi gently tapped Hiro’s hand, silently telling him to go about this more carefully. He looked at Keitaro, who’s eyes hadn’t left his hands. 

“What are you feeling right now, Keitaro?” Natsumi carefully prodded, placing a calm hand on Keitaro’s arm for reassurance. Hiro did the same, leaning into Keitaro’s side to comfort him. 

But it didn’t work. Keitaro only breathed another heavy sigh, his eyes never leaving his hands. 

“I just… wonder what I did. What he said, about me getting… special treatment from others. Is that… bad?”

Hiro and Natsumi both sat up, looking back and forth from each other. 

“Special treatment? What do you mean?” Natsumi asked. Keitaro shrugged, glancing over at his camera. 

“Well, Scoutmaster Yoshi let me keep my camera. And you guys have done a lot of things for me, and you’ve only known me for two days now. Am I being treated differently? And I’m not saying you’re treating me badly, but… if it makes others feel bad… then…”

“Don’t even go there.”

The three looked up in shock to see Yoichi and Hunter standing a few feet from them. Hunter was surprisingly close to Yoichi, who had his arms crossed in defiance. 

“How  _ we  _ decided to treat ya got’s nothin’ to do with Akatora. He’s just being an asshole because he’s upset he’s not getting people to lick the dirt off his shoes! We treat ya the way we treat ya because we chose to! Yer nice to us n’ all that shit, so why treat ya like a piece of shit?”

Hunter bobbed his head up and down, “I agree. Taiga is just trying to get attention. He expects stellar treatment from others, despite putting them down. And when he doesn’t get his way, he gets mad. But that’s  _ his _ loss, not yours. You’ve done nothing wrong, don't think you need to feel sympathy for him, alright?”

Keitaro smiled brightly, feeling a few tears prickle in his eyes. 

“They’re right. Taiga isn’t worth feeling bad about yourself. If he tried anything again, just go and get a scoutmaster, and they’ll deal with him. Always try and be diplomatic, even if it doesn’t work. It’ll show your the bigger man in the situation, and maybe teach Taiga a thing or two about being nice,” Natsumi added, patting his shoulder. 

“Yeah! So don’t cry, Keitaro! We treat you like we do because your awesome! And don’t think for even half a  _ second _ that you’re not! Okay!?” Hiro flung his arms around Keitaro, who broke into a relieved laugh. 

He sunk into Hiro’s embrace, and felt a few tears roll down his cheeks. 

They’d only known him for two days, and yet here they were, offering their support to him. While Keitaro disliked others feeling bad for him, he couldn’t help but feel grateful at their supportive words. 

With his feelings slightly quelled, they all went to bed. Keitaro curled into his blanket with a deep sigh, a smile on his face.

While his heart pounded at the thought of his cabin-mates coming to his aid, it wasn’t the only thing on his mind. 

The last thing he thought of before he drifted off into a peaceful slumber…

Was those shining, ruby eyes filled with pain. 

  
  
  


  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *INHALE*
> 
> AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
> 
> I DID IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTT!
> 
> Jeez, this chapter took for-fucking-ever to write! I didn't realize that these days were so long! I thought day 1 was rough...  
> What have I gotten myself into  
> Anyway, here we have day two! I introducing Yuri, Aiden, and Taiga n' friends! Taiga is that favorite I was talking about last chapter, in case ya'll were wondering.   
> I won't talk quite as much in these upcoming chapters, because day 1-8 will be mostly re-writes. Once we get to real meat of this route, I'll talk a little more.   
> Also I'm tired... I wanna sleeeeeep  
> I'll leave ya'll to enjoy Day 2!   
> Let's make the Greatest Memories!  
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	4. Day 3: Bonds at Sunset

“ATTENTION!”

The loud voice of Yoshi rang out in the morning air, drawing the attention of all the scouts surrounding him. He stood in the center of the courtyard with Yuri at his left, waiting until he had all eyes on him. When he confirmed he had the attention of every scout, he cleared his throat once more. 

“Today, we embark on our exciting outdoor adventure! But to add a little challenge to this activity, we’ll be separating all of you into groups of five! I will be putting our best scout, Natsumi, in charge of our newest members-”

Keitaro let out a small yawn, then flashed a grin at Natsumi, who in turn gave him a small bow with his head. When they woke up that morning, they all wasted no time dressing themselves and grabbing their belongings. Hiro was swaying in place, only being up for about fifteen minutes. Hunter was scribbling something down in a small notepad, and Keitaro was pretty sure Yoichi was just asleep standing up. 

“-Yuri and I will be watching over each of your performances closely, in order to test your understanding of the second buddy law!”

_ “A Buddy must always be prepared for anything!”  _ Keitaro whispered to himself, receiving a positive nod from Natsumi. Yuri clapped her hands together. 

“That’s right! Now head to your respective groups., and we’ll begin our trek shortly!”

Keitaro watched as Yoshi and Yuri dispersed, walking to groups that needed assistance. Keitaro placed a hand on his chin in thought, looking down at his feet. Yoshi had said challenge, but Yuri said…

“A test?” He asked aloud, receiving a nod from Natsumi. 

“Yes, Keitaro. The scoutmasters will be evaluating all of us on today’s activity and how we handle it!” He explained, raising a finger to add emphasis. Hiro groaned, rubbing his temple. 

“Whaaat? I’m no good at tests! It’s too early for this…”

Hunter shyly patted his shoulder, “It’ll be alright as long as we stick together.”

Natsumi nodded, crossing his arms and puffing his chest out with pride, “Hunter is right! You don’t have to worry, because I have plenty of experience with activities like this!”

Keitaro flashed a bright smile, hopping on his toes with excitement, “This is great! We already have the perfect team!”

Yoichi yawned, being awoken by the chattering of the group. He rolled his eyes, flashing a cocky grin, “I could this whole thing by myself. Blindfolded too!”

Hiro rose a brow, leaning back to get closer to him, “Oh really? You can’t even pack your own bag.” He gently nudged said bag sitting by Yoichi’s feet. Yoichi snatched it up, holding it almost protectively to his chest, “Why you-”

“Calm down you two!” Natsumi snapped, stepping in-between them. Hunter and Keitaro exchanged looks of amusement as the Natsumi tried to calm the two riled up scouts down before they left. 

“Natsumi! Is your team ready?” 

They all turned to see Yoshi standing a few feet from them, wondering when he got there. Natsumi whirled around, throwing up a salute and standing at attention. 

“S-Scoutmaster Yoshi! Yes, we’re ready!”

Yoshi nodded, looking at each of them individually, “We hope you all did some extra research on the basis of survival in the wild as well. Before we reach our destination, we’ll be passing through the forest, so stick together to avoid getting lost. Make sure to use this opportunity to improve your coordination as a team! That will be all for your briefing! Let’s move on, shall we?”

Yoshi turned around and blew a whistle, “Scouts! Follow me!”

The scoutmaster marched forward, the various groups all picking up their things and following behind. 

Keitaro slung his bag over his shoulders, trying to contain a squeal of excitement as he pranced forward. His group followed closely behind him, sticking close per Yoshi’s orders. 

Yoshi led them through the camp onto a dirt path, entering the wide-stretched, thick forest ahead. 

When they had been fully enveloped by the trees, Keitaro immediately pulled out his camera, taking pictures of different plants, small insects, and the occasional sun-ray that sliced through the trees at just the right angle. He bounced all over the path for the first thirty minutes of their walk, unable to contain his excitement. 

“We’re really going on an adventure!” He all but shouted suddenly, placing another photo in his bag. 

Natsumi chuckled at his seemingly endless enthusiasm, picking up his pace to walk at his side, “You look pretty enthusiastic about this, Keitaro.”

Hiro nodded, calling out to them from beside Hunter, “You bet! He’s been way excited about camping, even before we got accepted into Camp Buddy! You could say this is our first camping trip together!”

Natsumi hummed, placing a hand on his chin, “Let’s see, we usually go camping like this once a week; usually to learn about nature and to ensure our survival skills stay sharp! Passing through a forest like this is a great learning experience!”

Keitaro squealed, jumping forward and throwing his arms out dramatically, “I haven’t even been in a forest this big before! Do you mind if I take another picture?”

Natsumi couldn’t help but laugh, wondering why he was asked permission  _ now _ , but he nodded anyway, “Sure, go ahead!”

Keitaro lifted his camera again and took a picture of a large tree, getting on his knee to capture the best lighting he could. When the image was printed, he beamed with pride. 

“Wow! I feel like an expert with this kind of photo! Wait… huh?” 

Keitaro squinted and looked at the photo closely, noticing a blue speck on the tree trunk in the photo. When he was unable to identify it, he looked up at the actual tree instead, and let out a small gasp. 

“Oh! There’s a weird looking insect on that trunk!”

He slowly approached the tree, not wanting to scare the bug away. When he deemed he was close enough, he lifted his camera and took a picture of the bug. 

“Wow… I’ve never seen this kind of bug before!” He whispered with awe as the picture was printed. 

Natsumi walked up behind him, leaning over his shoulder. 

“That’s a stag beetle, Keitaro. They’re very common in this part of the woods!”

Hunter walked up to Keitaro’s other side, leaning over his shoulder as well. After a few moments and a few hums, Hunter let out a small ‘oh’ of confirmation. 

“That’s a species of rhinoceros beetle, specifically a male Allomyrina Dichotoma.” 

Keitaro let out a small ‘ooo’ with glee as Natsumi and Hunter told him about the bug, but Hiro stood behind at a loss for words. 

“Allo… aliens… die… huh?” 

Hunter chuckled as he heard Hiro try to repeat what he’d said. The blonde shook his head, pointing carefully to the top of the bug’s head, “It’s easily identified to its shape and the ‘Y’-shaped horn, which males use for combat during the mating season.”

Keitaro grinned, turning to Hunter, “Wow! How did you know all that, Hunter?” 

Hunter smiled in return, crossing his arms, “I’ve read about in a book about insects. But it’s my first time actually seeing one.”

Natsumi nodded his head, “Wow, Hunter! I didn’t know you were this well versed on insects!”

Hunter blushed gently, while Keitaro had crept as close to the tree as possible, reaching forward with a single finger to stroke the beetle’s back. 

“Aww~! It’s kinda cute!”

When he gentle ran his finger along it’s back, the beetle wiggled around, appearing to enjoy the attention it was getting. 

“Hey there little guy! What are you doing all the way out here by yourself?” He asked it, only getting a buzz of it’s wings in answer. 

Natsumi squatted down to get next to Keitaro, pointing at the breaks in the tree trunk were a thick, orange like fluid could be seen, “Insects like these enjoy tree sap. You’ll find them in areas like these, since they enjoy the way it tastes and smells.”

Keitaro lifted the beetle off the tree, allowing it to rest on his finger while Natsumi and Hunter went on about it's biology. 

“This is awesome! You two know so much about this!”

Natsumi smiled brightly, looking down at the beetle lovingly, “Beetles are my favorite insect, and animal in general. I only get to see them in the summer, however.”

Keitaro grinned, setting the beetle back on the trunk, “Then I should take plenty of pictures of them!”

Keitaro lifted his camera, pointing it carefully at the beetle. He took picture after picture, the flashes blinding them. The beetle twisted around, vibrating it's wings uncomfortably. Hiro sniggered, reaching out and grabbing Keitaro’s shoulder, pulling him back, “You might kill them with all those flashes, Keitaro!”

Keitaro winced, immediately dropping his camera back around his neck. Natsumi chuckled, patting Keitaro’s back reassuringly. 

“Don’t worry, Keitaro! I’ll catch one for you later. You can keep it as a pet.”

Keitaro’s entire frame seemed to light up, and he spun around to face Natsumi fully. He grabbed the bluenette’s hands, stepping up onto his toes to get closer, his eyes sparkling like emeralds in the sunlight. 

“ _ REALLY!?” _

Natsumi felt a blush rush over his cheeks, the look of Keitaro’s pure and unwavering zeal causing his heart to hammer in his chest. 

“Y-Yes, really! I used to collect bugs when I was younger. That’s why I know where all these little crawlers like to hide!” 

Keitaro began squealing with happiness, the beetle taking flight at the volume of Keitaro’s voice. 

While the three looked on at Keitaro’s joy, Yoichi finally caught up to them, deliberately letting out a loud groan to portray his annoyance. 

“Ughhhh! All this nerd talk is giving me a headache! Can’t you guys talk about something that  _ isn _ ’t totally boring?” 

Hiro scoffed angrily, waving the larger scout away, “Hey! You’re not a part of this conversation, so butt out!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, grabbing Hiro’s wrist and tossing it aside, clearing his path, “Shut it, Torch-head! I agree catchin’ bugs is kinda impressive. But it’s not as awesome as MY talent!” He jammed his thumb into his chest, flashing a cocky grin at his proclamation. 

Hiro rolled his eyes, walking past him with his nose up, “No one cares.” 

“What is it, Yoichi? I wanna know!” Keitaro cried, Hiro whirling around in disbelief. Yoichi smirked, basking in Keitaro's hope-filled gaze. 

“HA! You’re lucky I’m in a great mood today, so I’ll tell ya what it is!”

Keitaro smiled, bouncing on his feet excitedly as Yoichi took a deep breath in. 

“I can tell who’s who, just by their scent!” 

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, his arms falling to his sides. 

“What? Really!?” He asked, Yoichi nodding proudly. 

“Yep! As long as I’ve smelled it before, I can track it down from a mile away!” 

While Keitaro looked on in awe, the other three stared at Yoichi with hints of disbelief. Natsumi rose a brow, smiling nervously at the violette. 

“Yoichi, I don’t think that’s humanly possible…” 

Yoichi held up his hand, clearing his throat like he was preparing a speech. 

“Mr. Perfect here smells like soap and mint shampoo.” He stated, Natsumi gently reeling back, “How did you…”

“While Twinkerbell here smells like baby powder.” He gestured to Hunter, who rose his brow in confusion, “T-Tinkerbell…?”

Yoichi spun around, his attention now directed at Hiro. A sly grin crawled on his face as he gestured to the other scout, a cocky brow raised, “Torch-head is probably the easiest. He smells like sweat!”

Hiro reared up angrily, clenching his hands into fists, “What!? You’re just making that up!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, unbothered by Hiro’s insults. Keitaro twiddled his thumbs together, leaning forward to catch Yoichi’s attention, “How about mine, Yoichi?”

Yoichi’s eyes widened momentarily. He had never had someone take an interest in his gift before. But seeing Keitaro’s big, hopeful eyes stare up at him, he couldn’t stop the thumping of his heart. 

Letting out a hum in curiosity, Yoichi tentatively stepped forward, stopping mere centimetres from Keitaro. He leaned down, tucking his nose close to Keitaro’s neck. Keitaro seized up, a dark blush coloring his nose and cheeks as Yoichi practically buried himself into his side. Yoichi took a deep breath in, and held back a blissful sigh. 

Like a gentle rain. Or a softly flowing spring creak.

“Well…” He whispered, pupils blown wide. 

Behind them, Hiro was biting his lip to the point of rupturing his skin. When Yoichi took another deep breath in, Hiro threw his arms up, “HEY! Back off Keitaro, you creep!”

Yoichi huffed, taking a few steps back, returning Keitaro’s space to him. The brunette reached up to touch his neck where Yoichi had been the closest, still feeling his breath lingering on his skin. He was about to ask what his scent was like before Hiro spoke up again. 

“How’s that a useful talent, anyway?” He snarked, Yoichi spinning around to face him with a proud grin. 

“Well, no one could ever sneak up on me! 'Cuz I’d catch their scent first!”

Hiro stared at Yoichi silently, as if pondering his statement. He then sucked in a breath, bit his lip. 

And roared with laughter. 

Yoichi’s eyes widened in shock, confused at the reaction. 

“What’s so funny, Torch-head?”

Hiro had doubled over in his laughter, shaking violently at whatever he was thinking about. It took Hiro a few minutes to finally pull himself up, wiping the tears from his eyes. 

“Y-You’re worse than a jungle boy a-after all, hahaha! From now on, I’ll call you WOLFBOY! Since you’re about as talented as a dog!”

Hiro fell back into hysterics, falling on his rear when he was no longer able to keep his balance. Yoichi glared at him, crossing his arms angrily, “What?  _ Wolfboy _ ? I’m not the one with some stupid raccoon tail hanging off my butt!” Yoichi pointed to the key-chain hanging off of Hiro’s belt, but Hiro waved him off. 

“Hey, my tail key-chain looks awesome compared to those  _ dog ears _ you’ve got up there, hahaha!” Hiro placed his hands on either side of his head, flapping them about as if mimicking a dog's ears. Yoichi growled in response, clenching his fists tightly. 

Hiro climbing back onto his feet, pointing at him accusingly, “See? You’re really good at growling at people too! Further proving my point-”

“GRAAAAAH!” Yoichi roared with anger, baring his teeth like a set of fangs. Hiro once again broke into fits of laughter, spinning on his heel. 

“Oh no, Wolfboy is gonna bite me! CATCH ME IF YOU CAN!”

And with that, Hiro sped off into the bushes. Yoichi screamed out a battle cry, taking off after him,  _ “You’re done for, TORCH-HEAD!” _

When the two disappeared into the forest, Natsumi gasped in fright, running forward. 

“Hey, COME BACK HERE! We can’t get separated from each other! Are you listening to me- HEY!”

When Natsumi took off after them, Hunter cried in fear, “N-Natsumi!” 

Hunter sped off, hot on Natsumi’s heels. It took Keitaro five seconds too long to figure out what had happened, because by the time he came to his senses, all four of them had disappeared from his sight. 

“W-Wait for me!” He cried, tripping over his feet as he raced forward after his group. Keitaro leaped over tree stumps and tore through bushes, trying to listen for any sign of his cabin-mates. Yoichi was loud, but even his voice began to sound more and more distant as the seconds passed. 

Keitaro felt his heart hammering against his rib cage, fear beginning to trickle into his chest. He was running in every direction, losing his ability to think as the minutes went by. Where had they gone? How could they have gotten away so fast?! He could understand Hiro with his high energy, Yoichi with his fitness. Natsumi had long legs, so his strides were much larger. Hunter’s speed however surprised him, the small blonde tearing off like a little bullet in fright.

Keitaro skidded to a stop in a small clearing, spinning around in circles desperately. He couldn’t hear them, see them, anything! They had completely disappeared! 

Memories began to flood him as panic overtook him, “Oh no… which way did they go?” 

Keitaro tucked his hands under his arms, his breath becoming ragged with fear. He was alone in the woods, unaware of his location with no clear path. 

**_Keitaro! Run! I’ll find you!_ **

Keitaro felt tears prickle in his eyes, his knees beginning to quake and his chest felt heavy with pressure. 

**_WHEN I FIND YOU BOY, YOU’LL BE SORRY!_ **

Keitaro bit his lip and held back a cry when-

“ _ Hmmm~ Hmhmhmmm~” _

Keitaro jumped up, hearing a gentle humming behind him. 

He spun around, relief washing over him at the sound of another person. When he looked into the trees, he saw an unfamiliar scout approaching him, eyes closed with big headphones over his head. He had lightly tanned skin and unruly hazel hair, and he seemed unaware of the world around him. His uniform had a light blue color scheme to it with a cat patch on his left breast pocket. 

Keitaro felt his nerves begin to quell at the sight of another person. He sniffled quickly and rubbed his eyes, mustering up as much courage as he could. 

_ Another scout! I should ask him if he's seen anyone from my group. _

“H-Hey!” Keitaro shook his head and called out to the scout, but he had stopped to lean against a tree, still lost in whatever was playing through his headset. 

“He can’t hear me…”

Before Keitaro could try again, he heard rustling behind the scout. Another scout had appeared, this one unfamiliar also. He was much smaller, and looked almost frail, like a porcelain doll. He had well-kept white hair and soft violet eyes, with a matching white color scheme to his uniform. His patch had what appeared to be a fox, and he had long stockings adorning his legs. 

“S-Seto!”

The small scout called out to the one with the headphones. When he looked up and saw him, the small scout dove into his arms. 

“SETO! There you are!”

The scout with the headphones looked down in surprise, pulling the headset off and setting it around his neck, “Oh, Felix. What’s up?”

Seto and Felix were their names. Keitaro watched as Felix pried himself off of the other and stared up at him with hurt filled eyes. 

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you... you just walked away from the group, you couldn’t even hear us calling out for you!”

Seto smiled nervously, rubbing his neck nervously, “Oops! Sorry about that.”

Felix crossed his arms, looking down in exasperation, “They didn’t even care that you split up with us though… so I went to fetch you back… it was so scary searching for you alone…”

Seto smiled again, patting Felix’s shoulder reassuringly. He looked around the woods for a few moments before humming in curiosity, “Where are we supposed to go anyway?” 

Felix shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose, “You ran off without even knowing where you were going?”

Keitaro tilted his head, his brows raised in concern. 

_ They seem to be lost as well… _

“Umm… excuse me.”

Keitaro cleared his throat, catching their attention from each other. He took a few steps forward, plastering a welcoming smile on his face.

“Oh!” Felix jumped in surprise at his advancement, ducking behind the other. 

“Ah! Hi! I’m Keitaro! I’m kinda new here at Camp Buddy. Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you… I wanted to ask; Did you happen to see my friend Hiro? Or Yoichi maybe?”

Seto rose a brow, rubbing his chin in thought, “Hmmm… Yoichi? No, I haven’t seen him. Who’s Hiro though?”

Felix shook his head, “Keitaro and Hiro. They’re the newest members. They just joined the other day.”

Seto stared at him blankly. 

“We have new members?”

Felix face-palmed, “They’re the ones from the welcome party. Don’t you remember? You must not have been listening, since you’re wearing headphones all the time. Just like you are now.”

Seto chuckled, patting the headset lovingly, “That must be it!” 

Felix sighed, placing his hands on his hips, “I bet you didn’t listen to Scoutmaster Yoshinori’s briefing either.”

Seto chuckled again, “Oops! My bad! I remember seeing everyone head into the forest, so I just went with the flow.”

Felix shook his head angrily, stomping his foot on the grassy ground below him, “But you shouldn’t be going anywhere on your own, you know! If you had just tagged along with the group, I wouldn’t have had to follow you all the way out here and get separated from them myself!”

Keitaro rubbed his head nervously, “I got separated from my group as well. Some of my group-mates ran off and I wasn’t able to catch up to them.”

Seto shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets, How about we just go back to the campgrounds? That seems much easier…”

Felix shook his head wildly, grabbing Seto’s sleeve tightly, “We can’t go back to the camp! Everybody else is heading to the activity destination! They will worry and look for us! Nnn… if I only knew this would happen, I would’ve just spent my summer at home…”

Seto rolled his eyes, "Oh, come on…"

Silence befell them at Seto's irritation with Felix. Keitaro pursed his lips, looking down at the ground awkwardly. 

After a few moments, Felix noticed Keitaro's discomfort. 

"Oh, goodness! Where are our manners?! My name is Felix Clermont. And this is Shintaro Aihara."

Seto smiled, shaking his head at the introduction, "Just call me Seto. It's my nickname, and I prefer being called that."

Keitaro smiled, giving them a small bow in greeting.

"It's nice to meet you, Seto and Felix!"

The two of them returned the bow and smiled, the three of them falling into a comfortable silence. 

Seto stretched his arms up, letting out a small yawn, “Aside from Hiro and Yoichi, who else was with you?” 

“Well… Natsumi and Hunter are part of our group, but they got dragged away, chasing Hiro and Yoichi,” Keitaro explained, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

Seto hummed, looking off to the side, “Sounds like that Hiro kid is a troublemaker as well…”

Keitaro pursed his lips, holding back a comment. He shook his head a bit, deciding to change the subject. 

“So, who are you two teamed up with?”

“THERE YOU ARE YOU DWEEBS!”

Keitaro jumped, feeling a cold chill run down his spine at the sound of an all too familiar, all too aggressive voice. 

Keitaro looked behind Seto and Felix to see Taiga approaching them through the trees, Eduard and Lee flanking his sides. When Taiga stepped into the clearing, he furrowed his brows angrily at the two, baring his teeth at them.

“Argh! You two are so stupid! How DARE you ditch us! Don’t you know we already reached the finish line?!”

Lee stepped up, fixing his glasses condescendingly, “We were supposed to be the first team to complete the task if you two didn’t separate from us.” 

Eduard nodded his head, sticking his nose up, “Yeah, the scoutmasters were all like: ‘Ooh~ Where are your other two members? Did you leave them behind~?’”

Taiga snarled, “We even had to listen to the BUDDY LAW crap all over again then were forced to come all the way back here just to fetch you!”

Keitaro was unsure of what to do. He wanted to stand up for the two, but Taiga’s stature and aura were so intimidating. Unfortunately, Eduard looked right at him. 

“Oh look, Taiga~ Look who’s with our lovely teammates…”

When Eduard pointed at him, Taiga’s gaze followed it. Once more, those fiery red eyes had locked with his. 

Keitaro froze with fear at his gaze, his crimson irises boring into his soul. 

“ _ You…!” _

Keitaro winced at the amount of venom in his voice. Taiga stepped forward, moving past Seto and Felix. He stopped a good meter away from him, his eyes full of anger and hatred. 

“I bet he dragged them away from us so that we’d fail the activity. Talk about desperate~” Eduard sneered, shaking his head in disappointment. Lee nodded in agreement, crossing his arms and leaning towards Taiga. 

“This is an act of sabotage towards our squad, Taiga. An adequate punishment is mandatory.”

Keitaro panicked, shaking his head vigorously, “T-That's not true-!”

Felix walked around them and flanked Keitaro’s left, holding his head fearfully, “T-Taiga, you were yelling at us before the activity began… that’s why Seto put his headphones on and ran off…”

Lee shook his head, placing his hands on his hips matter-of-factually, “It was a necessary showmanship in that situation. Taiga was just using his authority as our responsible leader.”

Felix whimpered, “But we didn’t even get to vote who should be-”

“Sad~ Just goes to show they’ve already been infected with Keitaro’s  _ stupidity _ ! I guess birds of a feather flock together! You’re all dimwits!” Eduard interrupted Felix to throw a flurry of insults at them, waving his hand around. 

Lee nodded in agreement, “There’s no question regarding Taiga’s capabilities as a leader. Just as there is no need for any of your opinions. We understand how brains of such modest limits wouldn’t comprehend matters such as this.”

Seto let out a load, very audible groan, walking past them to stand by Felix, “Look, I could care less about you or your stupid lackeys being the leader. We’re trying to be nice to you guys but you’re just so hard-headed.”

Taiga’s jaw dropped at Seto’s confidence. Keitaro looked at him with shock, surprised at how unaffected he was. Seto stuck his nose up. 

“You can all just shove your opinions,  _ up your ass! _ ”

Seto spun on his heel and walked away, not giving them a second glance. Felix gasped, tearing after him in a panic, “S-Seto! Wait for me!”

Taiga growled furiously, his fists clenched tightly. 

“Eduard! Lee! Follow them! I’ll deal with those two later!” He snapped, pointing after the two. Eduard and Lee jumped, running after them to avoid angering Taiga any further. 

That left Keitaro and Taiga. 

Alone. 

Taiga sneered, walking around him almost like a tiger circling its prey. Keitaro took a few steps back, trying to maintain distance between them. 

“Heh, see Keitaro? No one here wants to be friends with you. Those two abandoned you like a used rag~”

Keitaro winced, shaking his head, “Y-You’re wrong! I… I have friends!”

Taiga rose a skeptical brow, “Oh yeah? How come you’re alone then? They must be tired of you already…”

Taiga’s eyes narrowed, his gaze darkening. 

“ _ They’re just like that…” _

Keitaro’s eyes narrowed in confusion. 

_ “EVERYONE’S LIKE THAT!” _

Pain. 

It was in his eyes again. Keitaro took a tentative step forward, seeing the obvious distress in his face. 

“Taiga…?”

But that only succeeded in making him angrier. Taiga clasped his hands over his ears, clenching his eyes shut. 

“STOP CALLING ME BY MY NAME! I hate hearing your STUPID VOICE!” 

Taiga shook his head, standing up straight to stare Keitaro down, his fangs barred like a wild animal. 

“You must be living in a  _ fantasy _ , if you believe anyone here cares about you! No one actually cares about anyone else here! Everything here, this Camp Buddy, it’s just a  _ stupid show!” _

Keitaro watched as Taiga tore into him, but he seemed to be more upset at the camp, and not him. Did something happen to Taiga? Why was he so angry about being here?

“I… I don’t understand… why are you so hateful?”

_ What hurt you? _

Taiga snarled, his crimson eyes flashing with intense pain. 

“Grr! I’m wasting my time with you. SCREW YOU!”

_ “KEITAROOOOO!” _

Keitaro had never been more relieved to hear Hiro’s voice. Taiga growled, taking a few steps back. 

“I’m not done with you… I’ll get you next time, for real!”

And with that, Taiga stomped away, disappearing into the forest. 

Keitaro was left alone in the clearing, his head running a million miles a minute.

“Taiga…”

The pain in his eyes was so clear, so powerful. What happened to him? He was so angry to be here, and it seemed like his presence only made it worse. What had he done?

Or was it really him he was upset with?

“AH! KEITARO!”

He whirled around at the sound of his name, seeing Hiro rushing towards him at mach one. 

“There you are!” 

Hiro opened his arms and tackled Keitaro with a bear hug, knocking the breath out of him. 

“We’ve been looking everywhere for you! Are you okay?!” Hiro buried his face into Keitaro’s chest, spewing a million questions. 

Keitaro smiled weakly, reaching up to return the hug, “Yeah, I’m okay, Hiro…”

Hiro smiled brightly, turning his head around, “EVERYONE! HE’S OVER HERE!”

Keitaro winced at his volume, but he felt relief hearing the others approach them. While Hiro continued to ask about his well-being, Keitaro’s mind had wandered off to Taiga once more. 

_ I don’t understand what’s wrong with Taiga… why did he say those things about Camp Buddy…?  _

He was drawn from his thoughts at the sound of various footsteps approaching them. When he looked up, he saw Yoichi, Hunter, and Natsumi enter the clearing, looks of relief on their faces. 

“Oh thank goodness! We were able to regroup!” Natsumi cried with relief, placing his hand on his chest. 

Yoichi scoffed, turning his head away, “It’s obviously Torch-head’s fault for making me chase him!”

Hiro snarled, releasing Keitaro from his grasp to face Yoichi fully, “Hey! Don’t blame this on me!”

Natsumi shook his head, looking down in shame, “It was my job as leader to guide everyone. And I failed at that task…”

Hunter walked over and placed a gentle hand on Natsumi’s arm, “Please. Keitaro’s already here. There’s no need to talk about this any further.” 

Yoichi scoffed, “Oh, you’re one to talk. All you ever did was slow us down!”

Hunter winced, tucking himself behind Natsumi, hiding from Yoichi’s harsh gaze. 

Keitaro began to panic, watching as the tensions rose between his team mates. 

_ They’re blaming each other! I should say something but… _

Keitaro took in a deep breath, “Guys, hold on!”

All eyes turned to him when he raised his voice, “Listen, blaming each other won’t do any of us any good. We’re together now. We should've kept our team together, but at least no one’s hurt. Maybe if I had stayed put, you guys wouldn’t have needed to look for me but, let’s not get disorganized now. Let’s just learn from this, stay together, and make it to the camping spot, okay?” 

Keitaro sighed, feeling better after having gotten that off his chest. 

The others looked at him silently, all feeling guilt starting to weigh down on them. How could this boy just smile through everything? It was incredible. 

“I guess… if I hadn’t run off, Wolfboy wouldn’t have chased me…” Hiro twiddled his thumbs together nervously, Yoichi nodding in agreement. 

“Yeah, what he said.”

Natsumi sighed, “I’m the leader, I should’ve kept better control of the situation, so, I apologize for that.”

Hunter smiled weakly, “M-Maybe if I stayed with Keitaro, we would’ve found each other easier…”

Keitaro smiled, clapping his hands together gleefully, “Thank you everyone, I’m just glad we’re together again!”

The other four all smiled, watching as Keitaro bounced on his feet. Hunter looked over and glanced at Natsumi’s watch, his eyes widening in shock. 

“Oh, goodness! Guys, we need to go! The scoutmasters must be waiting for us!” He exclaimed, pointing down at the watch on Natsumi’s wrist. 

The bluenette looked at his watch and gasped, nodding in agreement. 

“Oh my, we’re super late! We’ll need to get there quickly before they come looking for us!” 

Hiro tilted his head, rubbing the back of his neck, “So? Does anyone know which way to go?” 

Natsumi smiled, waving his hand as an offer to follow him, “I know the way. Just follow me!” 

Natsumi spun on his heel and marched forward, the other four following close behind. Keitaro sighed deeply, relieved to have his group back with him. After getting lost for a while, and his confrontation with Taiga, he was already feeling drained. 

They didn’t talk much on the way back to the path, feeling exhausted from the mishap that occurred. Natsumi kept his eyes glued to his watch, biting his lip nervously as time went by. Hunter and Hiro looked ready to fall asleep, while Yoichi just kept his head low as they walked. 

Keitaro hummed to himself quietly, using his tune to calm himself after all the hullabaloo. When they finally reached the path, Natsumi broke into a brisk walk, the others picking up speed to keep up with him. 

They kept this speed for about ten minutes as the trees became more widespread, signaling the forest was reaching its end. As the light of the evening began to break through, Natsumi let out a sigh of relief. 

“This should be the end of the forest.” Natsumi gestured to the end of the route, seeing Yoshi and Yuri standing at the end of the road. 

At the sound of his voice, Yoshi turned around to face them, a smile brightening his face, “Ah! There you are!”

Yuri smiled, beckoning them towards herself and Yoshi, “Come over here, boys!” 

Keitaro smiled, skipping over to their scoutmasters happily, his team close on his heels. When they stopped in front of the scoutmasters, Yoshi cleared his throat.

“It’s a good thing that everyone’e here; the rest of the scouts are already at the prairie. Apparently, your team was the last one to arrive!”

Natsumi held his head low, seemingly disappointed in himself at the proclamation. Keitaro gave him a concerned glance, but Yuri continued before he could say anything.

“Well… Taiga’s group told us about how both teams got lost on the way here, are any of you hurt at all?” Yuri asked, stepping forward to look over Keitaro, checking for any injury. Keitaro shook his head, whispering some words of encouragement to his scoutmaster. 

Yoshi sighed, looking back at the field were all of the other scouts were setting up tents already. When he turned around, he looked at Natsumi with a face full of concern. 

“I’m quite surprised that, among all of the scouts, Natsumi’s team was the last to arrive!” He exclaimed, Natsumi’s eyes darkening in disappointment. 

“I’m sorry, Scoutmaster Yoshi… I’m the reason we failed in today’s task. I wasn’t able to coordinate with my members…” He apologized, giving Yoshi a deep bow. 

Yoshi smiled, “Responsible answer, Natsumi. As penalty for being last, I will ask an important survival question. Keitaro-!”

The brunette winced. 

“-You were separated from your group the longest. Would you mind answering the question: ‘What’s the first thing you should do in the occasion you get lost in the woods?’” 

Keitaro stepped forward, his hands worrying together as he racked his brain for an answer. 

“Well… umm…”

Keitaro had to take a few deep breaths, reminding himself that being alone in the woods, did not immediately equal immense danger. He sat in silence for a few moments, then decided to answer with what he had done all those years ago. 

“Umm, make sure you have a communication device on you, and use it to reach out for help?”

Yoshi nodded proudly, “Well said! It’s always a good idea to have something like a phone or even walkie-talkie with you when you go to traverse the woods without any supervision. Good answer! Your group may now proceed to the prairie!” 

Yoshi stepped aside and allowed the five to pass by him, finally exiting the woods. Keitaro narrowed his eyes and the light of sunset poured into his eyes, the warmth of the sun rays dancing over his skin. He shivered with delight, gazing out onto the wide, open plain with awe once his eyes had finally adjusted. 

Yoshi walked past them, placing himself in-between all of the groups. He looked around for a few moments, before clearing his throat loudly. 

“Alright! Is everybody here? I will give you all ten minutes to rest before we start setting up our tents! Don’t wander off too far! Dismissed!”

Yoshi clapped his hands and walked over to Yuri, the two engaging in a deep conversation with one another. 

With them getting mostly free reign for a few minutes, Keitaro took the opportunity to voice his opinions on their campsite. 

“Wow… this place is spectacular!” 

Natsumi nodded in agreement, his eyes turning towards the horizon, “This is the perfect place to watch the sunset!”

Hiro jumped up next to Keitaro, placing his hands over his eyes as he stared forward at the orange sky, whirling around to gaze at the numerous colors, “Yeah… I’ve never seen a sunset this beautiful before! Look at all those colors!”

Hunter smiled brightly, moving up to stand next to Hiro, “Amazing, isn’t it?” 

Yoichi huffed, leaning down to massage his legs, “Mann! I can’t feel my feet from all that walking!”

Natsumi smiled, sitting down on the grass and patting the spot next to him. 

“Why don’t we rest here and sit down for a while?” He suggested, flashing a bright smile. Yoichi scoffed, tipping over and falling down onto the grass almost angrily, “What does it look like I’m doing?” 

Hiro scoffed, “Ugh! Can’t you go be annoying somewhere else?!?”

Hunter sighed, patting his shorts as he prepared to sit down, “I think I’m already used to Yoichi being Yoichi.”

Yoichi snarled, sitting up to stare down Hiro and Hunter, “You guys are making me sound like I’m a horrible person!”

“Well you are!” 

Natsumi sighed as Hiro and Yoichi began bickering, waving his hand to get their attention, “Now, now, you two! How about we just relax for now, and take a moment to appreciate the view?”

Keitaro sighed, watching as Hiro sat down next to Yoichi and Hunter sat adjacent from Hiro. With the space big enough, Keitaro seated himself between Hiro and Hunter, letting out a sigh of relief as the weight was taken off his sore feet. 

When they all fell into silence, the light of the sunset drew their attention towards the horizon. The five all gasped and looked in awe, the beautiful reds, yellow, and oranges dancing across the sky. The sun’s rays swirled across the lake on the other side of the field, shimmering brightly in the light of the setting sun. 

Keitaro smiled brightly, his heart moved by the beauty of the sky. He wanted to take a picture, to save this beautiful scene, but the sound of Yoichi’s voice drew his attention away from it. 

“Whoa! Would ya look at that view! I can see Buddy Lake from here!”

Keitaro looked at the lake, watching as a few ducks flew by and landed in the water, watching as ripples danced over its surface. Hiro gasped, seeing the same thing Keitaro had. 

“Wow! You’re right!” 

Natsumi smiled brightly, sitting up and leaning his arm on his knee, “It’s so nice here… I can stay here all day and watch this beautiful sunset.”

Yoichi sniggered, raising a sly brow as he turned to the bluenette, “Psh! What a sissy thing to say~! Why don’t ya  _ braid  _ your hair and bake some cookies while you're at it?”

Natsumi smiled nervously, “No need to get hostile, Yoichi. Enjoying nature can be fun!”

Yoichi dropped his hand, throwing his head back in exasperation, “Are you for real?”

Keitaro chuckled, shaking his head as the banter between Natsumi and Yoichi continued. He heard a stuttering to his left, and turned towards Hunter, seeing him trying to speak. 

“Did you want to say something, Hunter?” He asked, the blonde boy looking down at his knees nervously. 

Natsumi chuckled at his nervousness, “Hunter has always been the silent type. But I’m glad he is starting to get along with everyone!”

Hunter sighed, looking up at all of them nervously, “I’m sorry… I just don’t know the right words to say…”

Keitaro smiled, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder, “Don’t worry about it too much, Hunter. If you feel nervous, just take a deep breath, and say what’s on your mind.”

Hunter nodded, taking in a deep breath, “A-Alright…”

He took another deep breath, “Then, ummm…”

He turned to them shakily, and cracked a smile, “Th-This… feels nice…”

Keitaro felt his cheeks flush at the quiet proclamation, watching as Hunter’s eyes darted around nervously. When his heart began to thump against his chest, he heard Yoichi sigh in disbelief.

“Geez, can’t you say something that’s more than three words? It’s like, someone cut your tongue out or something!”

Natsumi gave Yoichi a gentle smile, reaching out to place a hand on his shoulder, “Now, now, Yoichi. Just let Hunter be himself.” 

Yoichi grunted, rolling his eyes and plucking Natsumi’s hand off of him, “Natsumi, your kindness is getting annoying.”

Natsumi only laughed, seemingly choosing to ignore the blatant insult, “Thank you, Yoichi!”

Yoichi frowned, “That wasn’t a compliment…”

Hiro and Hunter both laughed at Yoichi’s deadpan expression, Natsumi just smiling back at Yoichi’s proclamation. Keitaro couldn’t help but smile, leaning back on his hands and closing his eyes, taking in the sun’s rays. As their conversation carried on, their voices grew more and more distant as Keitaro began to lose himself to his thoughts. 

_ It’s so nice to see everyone having fun like this. Just seeing them all smile like this… _

Keitaro felt his cheeks grow warm at the thought of them all smiling at him. 

_ Makes me smile as well. _

Keitaro sighed, his smile growing wider. 

_ I guess this is why the scoutmasters made the third rule. To try our best and keep a bright smile on our faces! _

“Keitaro? Keitaro?! Are you even listening-”

“EH? What? O-Oh! I’m sorry! Hahaha…” Keitaro was torn from his mind at the sound of Hiro calling his name over and over. When he looked around, he saw them all staring at him with looks of confusion and amusement. Hiro sighed, shaking his head with a sympathetic smile at the show of Keitaro’s air-headedness. 

“What was it again?” 

Keitaro gave them his biggest grin as an apology, admitting that he wasn’t listening. Hunter giggled off to the side while Yoichi gave him a sly grin, a coy brow raised. 

Natsumi smiled brightly, clapping his hands together, “Keitaro is daydreaming about something. Or should I say,  _ afternoon-dreaming!  _ Hahaha!”

A few crickets hummed. 

While Hiro, Hunter, and Keitaro all gave smiles in response to Natsumi’s very… cheesy joke, Yoichi only groaned loudly, pinching the bridge of his nose like a disappointed mother. 

“ _ Oh my god… _ being you must be soooo sad…” 

Hiro sighed, turning to Keitaro to answer his earlier question, “We were all talking about how we joined Camp Buddy, Keitaro. Natsumi was just telling us how he joined!”

Keitaro made an ‘oh’ sound in interest, leaning forward to see Natsumi, “How did you join, Natsumi?”

Natsumi smiled proudly, clearing his throat, “Well… I usually ask my parents to enroll me in Camp Buddy every summer!”

Keitaro’s eyes widened in surprise, “Every summer? So this isn’t your first enrollment here?” 

Natsumi shook his head with glee, “Yes! A lot of us were enrolled from previous years! I have been enrolled here for three summers so far! You, Hiro, and Hunter are among the few new people that enrolled this year.”

Keitaro glanced over at Hunter, who nodded in confirmation. Hiro raised a skeptical brow, looking over at Yoichi, “So… does that mean that even Yoichi is a regular here?” 

Before Yoichi could respond, Natsumi nodded in agreement, “Yeah! He may not look like it, but he’s joined Camp Buddy every year with no fail! He was even enrolled  _ waaay _ before me! Yoichi must really love this place!”

Yoichi scoffed, turning his gaze down, a dark haze crossing his eyes. 

“That’s not  _ how _ it is! I wouldn’t enroll myself in this LAME camp!” 

Hiro rose a brow, giving Yoichi a skeptical glance, “Why are you there then? You’re not making any sense…”

Yoichi sighed, looking off towards the horizon, his eyes closed in thought, “I’d rather not talk about it-” He turned to glare at Hiro, “-And it’s none of your business!” 

Hiro threw his hands up in surrender, “Okay, okay! Jeez!” 

Keitaro turned to Hunter, wanting to diverge the topic before things got more heated, “H-How about you, Hunter?” 

“Ummm… I came over from England…” He whispered, Keitaro’s eyes widening in shock. That’s where he heard that accent before. Hunter’s wispy, soft voice made him curious, and he had been wanting to ask. So Hunter was English…

“That’s already obvious. You look and speak so different from the rest of us,” Yoichi snarked, leaning on his hand. Hunter winced, curling into himself like a scolded child.

Natsumi sighed sadly, “Yoichi, you should let Hunter finish his story…”

Hunter looked back up, directing his attention to Keitaro, “I was enrolled here by my parents a few weeks earlier than you and Hiro. Th-They have work to do here in Japan for the entire summer…”

Natsumi leaned forward, “And…?”

Hunter looked down again, “That’s it.”

Natsumi smiled apologetically, “Oh… I see.”

A pregnant pause stiffened the air. 

“SOOO! How about you, Keitaro, Hiro? We’re really curious how you two found out about Camp Buddy!” Natsumi asked, cracking under the awkward silence. Hiro cleared his throat dramatically, as if he had been preparing a speech,

_ “Well _ , I promised myself that I would try something new after the school semester. And while I was walking back home one afternoon, a flyer of Camp Buddy just flew right on my face!” He explained dramatically, waving his hands around for effect. 

Yoichi narrowed his eyes, “That doesn’t sound believable in the slightest…”

“Shush!”

He cleared his throat again, “So… I  _ immediately  _ looked it up when I got home, and I also got permission from my mom. My mom wouldn’t let me go alone, so I registered for Keitaro too!”

Keitaro cocked a brow, “Yeah. Without my consent.” 

The others snickered at Keitaro’s teasing tone, Hiro pouting childishly at the brunette’s condescending stare. 

“Awww! Come on, Keitaro. It was a nice surprise, right?” He whined, leaning to his side and plopping his head on Keitaro’s shoulder. 

Keitaro chuckled, giving in to Hiro’s puppy eyes. He reached up to pat his head, flashing a bright smile on his face, “Haha, of course! I really like trying new things! I’m really looking forward to making new friends, and plenty of great memories here!”

Hunter smiled brightly, looking up at Keitaro with big, hopeful eyes, “That sounds really encouraging…”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “That’s what we’re all here for right?” 

Keitaro felt his cheeks grow warm at the praise, receiving calm looks from Yoichi, Natsumi, and Hunter all while feeling Hiro snuggle into his side. They let themselves fall into a more comfortable silence, returning their gaze to the setting sun on the horizon. 

“Hey… this is really nice! We’re actually learning new things about each other!” Natsumi proclaimed, smiling brightly at them. 

Keitaro nodded, leaning back on his hands and letting out a deep sigh. 

This was really nice. It was the first time they’d all actually sat down and talked to one another. While they cheered him up last night, after his not-so-happy meeting with Taiga, they’d soon gone to sleep. Now, they had taken some time to get to know each other, and were enjoying each other’s company.

_ I hope we can do this again sometime… this is wonderful! _

Keitaro watched blissfully as the sun began to conceal itself over the horizon, the velvety blues of night creeping up behind them faster and faster. They sat in silence for another ten minutes or so, enjoying the comforting rays before they were interrupted. 

Keitaro was getting drowsy, nodding off gently when he heard Yoshi’s loud, booming voice a distance away. He turned around to see him gathering the other scouts, signaling that their break was over. 

“Attention! We all need to set up our tents before the sun sets completely! I need someone who can take care of the campfire while we set up the tents! Any volunteers?”

Keitaro slowly climbed to his feet, the others following behind. They all walked to the clearing where Yoshi was assigning tasks, stretching out their legs as they went. When Yoshi asked for someone to start the campfire, Keitaro watched as Natsumi approached him, placing his hand on his arm. Keitaro looked up at Natsumi with confusion at the touch, but went along with it when Natsumi guided him over to Yoshi. 

“I volunteer, Scoutmaster Yoshi! Keitaro will assist me. Right, Keitaro?” Natsumi called, turning to Keitaro with a smile. 

The brunette’s eyes widened in shock, shrinking back a little. He had no idea how to start a campfire! But he cracked a smile, nodding in agreement. 

“A-Ah! S-Sure!”

He immediately regretted the decision, feeling as if he would be more of a hindrance then a help. But before he could voice his concern, Yoshi spoke up. 

“Good! I knew I could count on you, Natsumi! I’ll leave you in charge, okay?” 

“Affirmative, Scoutmaster Yoshi!” Natsumi saluted him, Yoshi nodding one last time before he walked towards Hiro, Yoichi, and Hunter, all providing them with tasks of their own. Once he was out of earshot, Keitaro turned to Natsumi with a disheartened gaze. 

“N-Natsumi… I don’t know how to light up a campfire,” He admitted, feeling guilty about accepting the task without the knowledge to complete it. But Natsumi shook his head, patting his chest, “That’s exactly when I volunteered, Keitaro! I’m gonna teach you how to make one!”

Keitaro’s entire frame lifted, excitement pooling into his chest at the proclamation. A gentle blush dusted his cheeks at the show of kindness, and he nodded his head happily. 

“Th-Thank you so much, Natsumi!”

Natsumi returned the enthusiasm, but Keitaro quickly realized something. 

“But… I forgot to bring any matches with me.” 

Natsumi shook his head, reaching for his belt. He unclipped a small, black rock, holding it up for Keitaro to see. 

“No worries, Keitaro. I brought a flint with me!”

Keitaro looked over the small rock with confusion. It was dangling off a hook like a charm, but when he reached out to touch it, the surface of the rock felt genuine, and not made of plastic. 

“What is this? I thought it was just a key-chain?” He asked, remembering seeing it on his waist earlier today. He was so caught up in his photography that he glossed over it. 

Natsumi handed it to Keitaro, allowing him to look it over as he explained it's function, “It’s a substitute tool that can be used to start a fire!"

Keitaro hummed with interest, returning the flint to Natsumi. He furrowed his brows slightly, mulling over why a flint was better than matches.

"Wouldn't… matches be easier to use?" He asked, receiving a confirming nod from the bluenette. 

"They would be. But in a survival situation, you'll be battling with the elements. If a matchbox gets wet, or even just gets stored in a dry place, they become useless. That's why a flint is better to have. They're completely waterproof, so it's more convenient to bring around," He explained, Keitaro nodding in understanding. 

"I see. But, I don't know how to use a flint either…" 

“That’s why I’m here to teach you!”

Keitaro blushed darkly, smiling up at Natsumi nervously. He was so eager to teach him new things; and the light that radiated off his smile warmed Keitaro’s heart. Natsumi cleared his throat. 

“First, we’ll need to get some tinder for our fire! Just gather up some dried leaves and pile them up like this…” Natsumi walked around the clearing, picking up every dried leaf he saw, and returned to their spot. He set them down in a spot of dirt, surrounding it by rocks to keep the flame in.

Natsumi held out his flint and pulled out a small pocket knife, flipping the blade out. 

“Then hold this side of the flint, and strike it with steel!”

Keitaro sat down and watched as Natsumi bent the flint at an angel and slammed the knife over it’s side. To his amazement, sparks flew from the flint and landed on the leaves below.

_ Wow… Natsumi sure knows a lot. It’s no wonder Scoutmaster Yoshi put him in charge so often! _

“See? Sparks are coming out from the flint! Make sure to point them at the dried leaves!” He added, demonstrating by moving the flint closer to the leaves. 

Keitaro’s jaw dropped as the leaves began to released wisps of smoke, the scent swirling around him. 

“It’s starting to smoke!” He cried, bouncing on his feet. Natsumi nodded, waving him down to join him on the ground. Keitaro sat down on his knees, watching as Natsumi leaned forward towards the smoking leaves. 

“Once you see an ember, gently blow on the tinder. Try it out!”

Keitaro nodded, leaning down on his hands to get as close as he could. He sucked in a breath, and gently blew on the leaves. To his amazement, the ember glowed brighter and spread across the leaves, tiny flames beginning to prance across the tinder. 

“Whoa! It lit up!” Keitaro cried, sitting up to stare at the tiny flame he just created. 

“That’s because the fire needs oxygen to combust! Now we’ll add these dried twigs to fuel the flames.” Natsumi pulled some small sticks out from behind him, tossing them onto the tinder. The twigs began to glow and snap, the fire seizing them immediately. Keitaro watched as the fire grew bigger and bigger in awe, but also wondered where he got the sticks in the middle of a field.

“When did you gather these branches, Natsumi?” He voiced his thought, Natsumi smiling in return, “I found them lying around as we were passing through the forest. I knew we’d need them for a campfire later! You’ll know it’s good firewood if you hear a crisp, cracking sound when you break it.” He demonstrated by taking a twig and snapping it in two, the crack sending shivers down Keitaro’s spine when he listened closely. 

After Natsumi tossed it into the fire, which was now roaring with life, Keitaro smiled up at Natsumi. 

_ Just goes to show how prepared Natsumi is, I wouldn’t be able to figure this stuff out by myself! _

Natsumi stood up briefly, walking over to a small pile of logs near one of the tents. He picked up about three and trotted back over, sitting back down next to him, “Now that our fire is getting bigger, it’s time to add the bigger, chopped logs!”

Natsumi tossed the logs into the fire, watching the fire crawl across their surface. 

“And there we go!” Natsumi threw his arms out, presenting the now roaring fire. Keitaro sighed, placing his hands in front of it to warm himself. The sun had now completely set over the horizon, stars beginning to dot the sky.

Keitaro looked into the flames, squinting at it’s brightness. He turned to Natsumi with a warm smile. 

“Wow! Natsumi! You made such a perfect campfire!”

Natsumi blushed, returning the smile gratefully, “Why thank you, Keitaro!” 

Keitaro nodded, plopping down next to the fire and holding his hands out in front of it once more, “I’m sure we’ll be completely warm for the night with this! Thank you for teaching me how to start a fire!”

Natsumi nodded, giving him a small bow, “You are very welcome!”

Natsumi straightened up, looking out onto the now darkened horizon, “Just in time too, it’s already evening! I’m going to go assist the scoutmasters with setting up the tents, okay?”

Keitaro nodded, settling into his spot, “A-Alright, Natsumi. Thank you again!”

Natsumi gave him one last smile, walking away with his heart pounding in his chest. 

Keitaro let out a blissful sigh, taking in the scent of the crackling fire. The embers danced in the air gracefully, and Keitaro watched them quietly, taking in the silence of the evening. 

_ “Hnnn…” _

Keitaro’s ear twitched. He raised his head at the sound of a low growl, seeing Hiro standing off to the side, partially hidden by one of the tents. Keitaro cocked a brow in curiosity. 

“H-Hiro? How long have you been standing there?”

Hiro grumbled to himself coming out of his hiding spot. Hiro was holding something in his arms, but before Keitaro could identify it, placed it down on the ground and stood in front of it. He stopped about a meter from Keitaro, and crossed his arms angrily, “Hmph!”

Keitaro stood up from his spot, dusting off his shorts. He saw how Hiro was avoiding his gaze, looking down at the ground with his brows furrowed in frustration. 

“What? W-Why are you looking at me like that…?” Keitaro asked nervously, afraid he’d done something to upset his friend. 

Hiro didn’t hold the frown for too long. At the sound of Keitaro’s concern and fear, Hiro let out a deep sigh of disappointment, his arms dropping to his sides. 

“‘Cuz it looks like you made a new best friend…”

Keitaro tilted his head, “Huh? What are you talking about? Y-You mean, Natsumi?”

“Hmph!” Hiro huffed once more at the sound of his name, turning his nose up. Keitaro looked back and pointed at the fire. 

“He was just showing me how to use a flint.”

Hiro rolled his eyes, crossing his arms again, “Oh, really? Then why did he choose you, out of all of us, to start a fire with him? He could’ve lit it himself, right?”

Keitaro opened his mouth to speak. 

“Oh! I know. It’s because he’s perfect and handsome and wants to look good in front of you!”

Keitaro's jaw snapped shut, immediately realizing what was going on. Hiro was, for some reason, jealous of Natsumi. Not wanting Hiro to dislike Natsumi, Keitaro needed to squash this before it got worse. Hiro always had a jealousy issue when it came to Keitaro, often not wanting to share him with anyone. Keitaro knew Hiro didn’t have a lot of friends besides him, so it made a bit of sense for him to be a bit possessive. 

Keitaro shook his head, and gave Hiro a warm, tender smile. 

The amber-eyed boy felt his heart pick up when he opened his eyes to see that smile across Keitaro’s face. 

“No one could ever compare to my bestest buddy! Everyone knows you’re my one and only best friend!”

Hiro’s jaw dropped, “W-What…?!”

Keitaro reached forward to take Hiro’s hand, “I’m just trying to get along with our new friends here at camp, Hiro. So please, don’t think for one second I’m trying to replace you!”

Hiro’s face exploded with color, his heart racing a million miles a minute at the tender proclamation. He shook his head and smiled proudly, patting Keitaro’s hand. 

“W-Well… if you put it that way, I guess I can let it slide just this once.”

Keitaro rose a brow. Just the once? 

“Hiro?” 

Hiro shook his head, sighing to himself, “Nevermind all that, Keitaro.”

Keitaro rose a brow, wondering what he meant by that. But he decided to put it aside when he saw something behind Hiro. The things he was carrying earlier. 

“A-Anyway, I noticed you were carrying something… what have you got there, Hiro?” 

Hiro’s eyes lit up brightly. He spun around and picked it up off the ground. It was a dome-shaped object, like a plate. Whatever it was, it was wrapped in tinfoil. Hiro placed it on one hand, and used the other to dramatically remove the foil. 

“Oh this? This is our dinner for tonight!” 

Hiro tossed the foil aside to reveal a plate of pasta, an orange sauce decorating the top. The smell wafted off and filled Keitaro’s nose, the brunette almost drooling.

“Eh? The Scoutmasters left you in charge of our dinner?” He asked, sniffing the food blissfully. 

Hiro shook his head with a proud smile, “Nah! This dinner is just for you and me!” 

Keitaro felt a little bad about leaving the others out of such a good looking meal, but when he got another whiff the pasta, the feeling was drowned out completely. 

“When did you have time to make this, Hiro?” He asked. 

“I made this together with Bro Aiden. I dropped by the mess hall this morning before we left! It was really nice of him to let me borrow some of his ingredients.”

Keitaro took another whiff, the scent smelling familiar to another favorite dish of his, “Wait… what is this?”

“It’s pumpkin pasta! Sounds special, right?” He answered, Keitaro bobbing his head in agreement. He loved pumpkin flavored things!

“Since I heard we’re camping here for the night, I assumed they were just gonna feed us some grass and sticks. We can’t have that, now can we?” Hiro sat down on one of the logs placed for make-shift benches, patting the seat beside him. Keitaro sat down eagerly, scooting close to Hiro. 

“This looks  _ delicious _ , Hiro!” Keitaro all but drooled, Hiro smiling proudly. He reached into his back pocket and whipped out two plastic spoons. Unwrapping them, he handed one to Keitaro. 

“What are you waiting for then? There’s plenty for both of us! Dig in!” 

Keitaro took the fork eagerly, swirling some of the pasta onto the fork. When he lifted it up and took a bite, Keitaro held back a groan. 

Whatever Hiro had put in this besides pumpkin he didn’t know, but this was  _ amazing _ . Hiro took notice of Keitaro’s blissed out face, smiling nervously. 

“Like it?” 

Keitaro nodded wordlessly, his mouth still full. Once done, he wasted no time in taking another bite. Hiro laughed heartily, taking his own bites before Keitaro cleaned the whole plate. It warmed his heart to see Keitaro enjoying the food he worked hard to make. 

The two ate in comfortable silence, enjoying the sound of the fire and the smell of the food. 

They cleared the plate in only five minutes, more hungry then they originally thought. Once done, Keitaro placed his fork on the plate, leaning back to take in a deep breath. 

“Ahh! That was delicious, Hiro!” Keitaro sighed, Hiro blushing in return. 

“I’m glad you liked it!” He placed the plate off to the side, leaning back to stretch out his torso. 

Keitaro sighed again, the guilt from before slowly creeping back. 

“Though, I feel kinda guilty that we didn’t share this with everyone else…” He admitted, scratching his face. Hiro shrugged, rubbing his temple, “There’s not enough everyone anyway.”

Keitaro sighed, nodding in agreement. Not wanting to sour Hiro’s mood, he looked up and gave him another bright smile. 

“I’m gonna say it again; that was really super yummy! I wish we had more! You should be a chef someday, Hiro!” Keitaro clasped his hands together, leaning a bit towards Hiro. 

Hiro put his hands on his cheeks, shaking his head a bit with embarrassment, “ _ Oh you~! _ You praise me too much.”

He let the heat drain from his cheeks, rubbing his neck, “It’s just I’ve been cooking more often lately. And of course, I’ll only serve you my BEST dishes!”

Keitaro smiled brightly, about to thank him again before another voice broke out. 

“AHA! I knew I smelled food around here!” 

Keitaro whirled around to see Yoichi jogging towards them. 

Hiro groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Ughh… I totally forgot about this guy…”

Yoichi squatted down behind them, cracking his knuckles and leaning on his hands. 

“Whatever food ya got, gimmie some!” He demanded, his stomach growling loudly. Keitaro felt the guilt rush back to him, wishing now that he’d saved some of the food. 

‘I’m afraid there’s nothing left, Yoichi…” He admitted, twiddling his fingers together. 

Yoichi’s jaw dropped in shock, “WHAT! NO WAY! I AM NOT HAVING JUST MARSHMALLOWS FOR DINNER!”

Hiro’s head shot up, a smile breaking onto his face, “Did you say marshmallows?”

Yoichi nodded, “Yeah! That stupid scoutmaster probably forgot to bring some real food. And I heard all we have to eat for dinner are a couple mallows and crackers!”

His stomach growled again, “I’m  _ starving _ and we’re just having that?!”

Hiro chuckled, shaking his head, “We can make that taste a lot better, you know?”

Yoichi rolled his eyes in disbelief, “How the hell are you gonna make a blob of sugar taste any better?” 

Hiro pounded his chest proudly, reaching out and patting Yoichi’s shoulder, “Come on, dude! Just trust me!”

Yoichi sat in silence for a few moments, staring at Hiro skeptically. The two sat in silence for a couple of seconds, staring each other down. When Hiro’s gaze didn’t break, Yoichi sighed in defeat, his shoulders sagging. 

“Alright, fine-” He stood up, “-Follow me. The scoutmasters are preparing the mallows over there.”

Hiro leapt to his feet, dusting off his pants. He gave Keitaro a small wave as Yoichi trudged off, “We’ll be back soon, Keitaro!”

Keitaro waved back as Hiro skipped off after Yoichi. He smiled warmly, watching the two disappear behind a few of the tents. 

“Those two are actually getting along nicely!”

Keitaro stood up slowly stretching his body out. Wanting to let his stomach settle, he decided to go for a walk around the campsite to see if there was something else he could help with. 

_ “Ow!” _

Keitaro’s head shot up at a sound of distress. Moving through the tents, he looked around to see who cried out when he saw-

“Oh! Isn’t that…?”

Keitaro turned to see Hunter buried underneath the disassembled pieces of their tent. A big, metal rod was rolling on the ground in front of him, Keitaro assuming that to be the cause of Hunter’s yell. Keitaro moved through the other scouts and stopped in front of him, reaching out and lifting up the tarp to see his face. 

“Hunter…?” 

Hunter’s eyes opened in shock, “Oh, Keitaro!”

Keitaro smiled nervously, looking at Hunter’s situation. The pieces of the tent were everywhere, and it seemed to have caved in on him. 

“May I ask… what you’re doing?” Keitaro inquired, Hunter’s face turned a dark red in embarrassment.

“I-I… u-uh…” The blonde looked down in shame, unable to answer Keitaro. 

Keitaro only smiled sympathetically, lifting the tarp more to provide Hunter an exit, “You look like you could use some help.”

Hunter began untangling himself from the pieces, “I was trying to set up our tent… I’m not sure if the instruction manual is correct… or maybe I just didn’t follow it correctly.” 

Once Hunter had freed himself from the tent, Keitaro helped him to his feet, brushing off his uniform for him, “I’ll help you out, Hunter!”

Hunter’s eyes widened in shock, but he quickly nodded his head, “R-Really?! Please do… I’m struggling quite a bit with all this…” 

Keitaro nodded, patting Hunter on the head for encouragement, “Of course! That’s what friends are for!”

Hunter’s face flushed gently, nodding again in thanks. 

“Setting up a big tent like this needs at least two people! Alrighty, let’s see!” 

Keitaro sat down and opened the instructions, patting the ground next to him. Hunter sat down next to him, leaning over his shoulder to see the book. 

“Alright, so first things first, we have to stake down the corners of the tent, or the bottom. Now one issue I see is the placement, do you see the ground?” Keitaro patted the place where Hunter had tried to set up the tent. 

“There are a lot of divots in the ground, or small bumps. It’ll make it harder to secure the tent, so the first thing we should do is choose a flatter surface!” 

Keitaro looked around for a few seconds, crawling a few meters away to test another spot. A smile crawled on his face.

“Come here, this stop will work nicely! Feel the ground?” Keitaro gestured for Hunter to feel the grass, the blonde sifting his hands in the dirt. He nodded. 

“Since the ground here is flat, it’ll be easier to put the pieces together! Okay, now let's take the bottom of the tent and stretch it out! We want it to be as taut as possible so that it won’t bunch up underneath us and make sleeping uncomfortable!” 

Keitaro took one corner of the tent and staked it down, making sure the big nail was deep in the ground before moving to the next corner. He pulled on the corner roughly, pulling it out as far as it could go without ripping up the already set corner. Once it was all stretched out, he pushed the next stake into the ground. 

“Okay! Why don’t you try the other two?” Keitaro suggested, handing him the two other stakes. Hunter nodded nervously, crawling over to the other wide of the tarp. He grabbed the corner and pulled as hard as he could, watching the other two sides carefully. He stuck the stake in the ground, pushing down on it to get it through the dirt. After a few seconds of struggling, he managed to get it down securely, and sat back to take a breath. 

“Great job, Hunter! You picked that up quickly!” Keitaro praised, clapping his hands together. 

Hunter smiled, taking the other stake and setting the last corner of the tent. Once the bottom sheet had been secured, Keitaro picked up the instruction manual. 

“Alright, now we need to put the poles together!”

Hunter rose a brow, “We don’t set them on the ground first?” 

Keitaro shook his head, “If you look here, we put the poles together first so that we can set the actual tent itself on them. If we try to put the poles down without linking them, the whole thing caves in on itself.”

Hunter let out a small ‘oh’, realizing his mistake from earlier. Keitaro patted his shoulder, taking two of the poles. 

“This tent is a bit easier since it only has two poles. But the size of them is what causes the difficulty. Since there’s only two, they have to be super big and really sturdy. So, we’re gonna link them liiike, this!” 

Keitaro snapped the two pieces together, Hunter nodding in understanding. He took the other two poles and followed Keitaro’s example. Keitaro grinned, setting down his pole and picking up the tent. 

“Now, for the last step! We’re gonna lay the tent out like this-” He set it down on the ground so that the door to it was visible, “-And you see these holes on the sides? We’re gonna take the poles and work them through those until they poke out the other side!”

Keitaro and Hunter set the poles inside the tent, watching them cross over in the center. Keitaro grinned. 

“And now, we’ll set the ends of the poles in the steaks! This is where we chose which direction our tent will face! I’m thinking east, so that we’ll wake up to the sunset!”

Keitaro and Hunter lifted the tent together, sticking the ends into the designated holes on the bottom tarp. Once it was set and secured, Keitaro stood up and clapped his hands together.

“Yay! There we go!”

Hunter sat down and looked at the tent in awe, “Wow! I didn’t think it would be this easy. Thank you for helping me, Keitaro!” 

Keitaro smiled, nodding happily, “You’re welcome, Hunter!”

Hunter looked down at the book, picking it back up to read it over, “The instructions from the book made it sound so easy… I didn’t know it was actually this difficult to execute.”

Keitaro shook his head, “You just really need someone to help you out. Setting up a tent is hard, especially if you’re alone. Even I wouldn’t be able to set this up all by myself. Though I must ask, why were you doing this alone, anyway?”

Hunter twiddled his thumbs together, “Everyone looked so busy with their own things… I wanted to help out too, without bothering anyone…”

Keitaro patted Hunter’s shoulder, giving him a warm smile, “It’s okay to ask for help, Hunter! We’re all your friends here! Even the scoutmasters!”

Hunter frowned, looking down at the ground, “It’s just… I find it too hard to approach anyone…”

Keitaro shook his head in disagreement, “But you’re doing so great around us! With Hiro, Natsumi, Yoichi, and me!”

Hunter looked up in doubt, “R-Really? You think they’re my friends too?”

Keitaro nodded, “Of course! We’re all your friends!”

Hunter laughed nervously, a small blush dusting his cheeks. Keitaro smiled back, feeling his heart thump against his chest. 

_ Wow… Hunter looks really happy! I guess he wants to make friends with everyone, like me.  _

“Anyway, Hunter! You must be hungry, right?” Keitaro asked, receiving a nod from Hunter. 

“K-Kind of…”

He smiled, “Okay! I’ll get you some marshmallows! Would you like that?”

Hunter smiled, “I’d love that, Keitaro! I think I can handle things from here. I’ll just put our things in the tent.”

Keitaro nodded, turning around to leave, “Alrighty! I’ll get you some yummy marshmallows, okay?” 

Hunter nodded, picking up the bags to move them inside. 

Keitaro smiled to himself, skipping off to find a scoutmaster. He wasn’t sure where the marshmallows were kept, keeping his eyes peeled for a pile or anything. 

“Okay, let’s see... where do they store those marshmallows?”

Keitaro turned in circles, seeing nothing but bags, supplies, and the occasional scout. 

He was about to look for Yoshi instead, when he saw a small pile of bags. When he stepped closer, he saw the fluffy treats within them. 

“Oh! Here we go!”

He skipped forward, reaching down to pick up one of the bags, “I guess I’ll just take one and-”

_ “And who said you could take those without my permission?!” _

Keitaro froze in fear when he heard Taiga’s voice. Looking up, he saw the flame-haired scout approaching him, his brows furrowed in anger. 

“Oh no…” He whimpered, taking a few steps back to maintain his space. 

Eduard and Lee flanked his sides, the three stopped a meter or so away from him, all looking displeased at his presence. Eduard was first to speak up. 

“HOW DARE YOU STEAL FROM TAIGA!” He screeched, Keitaro wincing at his volume.

“You’re not just a fake idiot, but a  _ thief _ as well! Ugh! Just LOOKING at you gets me so irritated!” Eduard continued to berate him, Keitaro standing there rigid and unsure of what to do. 

“Such avaricious behavior will  _ not  _ be tolerated! You should be ashamed of yourself!” Lee added to the insults, pointing at Keitaro accusingly. Keitaro was raking his brain for something to say, but thankfully, Natsumi had soundlessly stepped up behind him. 

“What’s going on here?” He asked, Keitaro turning around and flashing him a smile of relief. 

Eduard scoffed, placing his hands on his hips, “This little runt is stealing marshmallows from Taiga!”

Lee nodded in agreement, “It’s true! We witnessed the whole thing! We caught him right in the act!”

Taiga stepped forward, Eduard and Lee moving back to give him space, “This bag of marshmallows was closest to my tent! Who else could it have belonged to?!”

Keitaro sucked in a breath, feeling the tensions rising higher. He didn’t want to make a scene, or start another fight. Before anyone could say anything, Keitaro took a few steps forward, holding the bag out to Taiga.

“Here, Taiga. You can have it back.”

Taiga’s jaw snapped shut, his eyes widening in surprise. He stood in silence for a few seconds. 

“H-Ha! So you  _ did _ steal this from me?!” He snapped, Keitaro shaking his head. 

“No, Taiga! I really didn’t know it was yours! That’s why I’m returning it!” He tried to explain his good intentions, but it only succeeded in making him angrier. 

“You really wanna pick a fight with me, eh?!” 

Keitaro stepped back, “N-No! I-I…”

Natsumi stepped in-between them, scowling at Taiga, “Seriously, Taiga? Over a bag of marshmallows? We can just get you a new bag from the stash.”

Taiga snarled at them, rearing himself up, “Shut up! Why the hell do all of you always give this dork special treatment? What good has he done for you anyway? He’s been here for like a day and everyone is going  _ gaga _ for him! He doesn’t even know how to set up a fire, he secretly brought his own dinner, and he even took over someone else’s task!”

Keitaro’s eyes widened in shock. How did he…

Before the fight could escalate any further, Keitaro saw Yuri approaching them. Without a word, she stepped in-between Taiga and Natsumi and held out a new bag of marshmallows. 

“Here, Taiga. I got you a fresh bag of marshmallows. Mr. Nagame didn’t mean to take that bag from you, okay? So, run along now, Mr. Akatora, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Kurosawa.” 

Taiga growled, snatching the bag out of her hand, “Tsk. You’re all the same. Come on, guys. This camp is complete bullshit!”

Taiga stomped away, Eduard and Lee hot on his heels. 

Once the three were out of earshot, Natsumi turned to Keitaro with a worried expression, “Are you alright, Keitaro?”

Keitaro tucked the bag to his chest, his lip quivering, “If I hadn’t touched Taiga’s stuff, he wouldn’t have gotten angry at me… now Taiga will hate me even more… I just want to be his friend…”

Yuri smiled softly, placing a hand on Keitaro’s shoulder, “Mr. Nagame, remember what I told you? Buddy Law number three! Now what was it again?” She placed a finger on her chin in fake thought. 

Keitaro sniffled, looking up towards her, “A buddy shows a bright smile on his face.”

Yuri smiled brightly, “Exactly! If you really want to be friends with Taiga, you’ll have to try harder. You won’t be able to earn that friendship if you give up and sulk.”

Natsumi furrowed his brows, “But Scoutmaster Yuri, Taiga’s acting unreasonable…”

Keitaro shook his head, “Ms. Yuri is right... I just have to try again!”

Yuri grinned, “That’s the spirit! Come on, let me see that smile of yours!”

Keitaro flashed a bright grin, Yuri clapping her hands together. Natsumi smiled in return. 

Keitaro rubbed the back of his neck, “I’m sorry for making you worry about me, Natsumi, Ms. Yuri.”

Yuri shook her head, patting Keitaro’s head and ruffling his hair lovingly, “Oh, it’s alright! It’s just a little accident! It’s nobody’s fault!”

Natsumi stepped up to Keitaro’s side, “I’m just glad you’re feeling better now.”

“Now promise us you won’t let it bother you too much, okay Keitaro?” Yuri asked, smiling when Keitaro nodded in agreement. 

“Yes, Ms. Yuri! Thank you!”

Yuri nodded, clapping her hands together, “Anyway, I think Yoshinori finished preparing our dinner! Let’s all gather up with everyone else~!” 

Yuri gestured for them to follow her, leading them to the campfire. Keitaro let himself wander into his thoughts as they walked, a few scouts moving past them. 

_ I may not understand why Taiga hates me so much right now… but it’s going to help if I worry about it either. I just have to do better next time!  _

He smiled to himself. 

_ I want to be there for Taiga the same way my friends and the scoutmasters are here for me! _

Keitaro thought of those ruby eyes boring into him. Something about Taiga’s gaze both terrified him, and… excited him. He didn’t know why, but whenever Taiga looked at him, whether in annoyance or malice, Keitaro couldn’t stop his heart from hammering against rib cage. What was it about that boy?

Before Keitaro could think on the matter further, he saw the campfire come into view. Natsumi led him over to the log where Hiro, Yoichi, and Hunter were all waiting. The two sat down, watching as Yuri walked over to Yoshi, whispering about something. 

Yoshi nodded, turning around to do a headcount, “Alright, is everybody here? We know all of you are hungry from today’s activity! So who’s up for roasted marshmallows?!” 

While most of the scouts looked excited at the offer, Natsumi raised his hand, “A-Again, sir?”

Yoshi nodded gleefully, “Yes! Just like always!”

Before anyone else could say anything, Hiro’s hand shot up in the air. 

“Scoutmaster Yoshi! I brought plenty of graham crackers and chocolates! How about we make s’mores?” 

Before anything else happened, Hiro pulled his bag out from behind him and unzipped it. Turning it upside down, dozens of graham crackers and chocolate bars fell onto the floor, burying his feet.

“Whoa!” Yoshi leaned down to observe the food in surprise. Keitaro turned to Hiro, a look of confusion on his face, “H-Hiro? Where did you get all that?!”

Hunter hummed in thought, “I saw him packing nothing but food yesterday.”

Hiro nodded, “Yup! I filled my bag with it! This will be more than enough for everyone for sure!”

Yuri clapped her hands, “Oooh~! I love s’mores!”

Yoshi smiled, “Looks like we’re gonna have an improved version of a campfire treat for tonight, thanks to Hiro!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes at his enthusiasm, “It was your fault that our dinner was boring to begin with! I wouldn’t call a buncha sugar balls dinner!”

Yoshi chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck, “In any case, this was very resourceful of you, Hiro! Good job! Everyone, please enjoy dinner!” 

The graham cracker packs and chocolates were passed around, Hiro rubbed his hands together, “Alright! Let’s start roasting!”

While they all set their marshmallows on their stakes, Natsumi turned to Hiro with curiosity, “Is this going to be any different from the roasted marshmallows we used to have last summer camp?” 

Hunter nodded, “We’re going to spread melted chocolate on a cracker and the stuff the roasted mallows between the two crackers.”

Hiro smiled, “Whoa, Hunter! You cook, too?”

Hunter shook his head, “N-No… I just read it from a recipe book once… I haven’t actually tried eating one…”

Yoichi groaned, his stomach growling in tandem, “GAH! Enough with the chit chat! I’m starving!”

Hiro rolled his eyes, sighing with defeat, “Geez, Wolfboy! You’re acting like an animal again…”

Yoichi groaned again, “Go make one for me right now, Torch-head or I’ll start using your hair to roast marshmallows myself!” 

Hiro sighed, “Are you really this cranky when you’re hungry?”

While Hiro and Yoichi descended into another argument, Keitaro had just finished dressing up two s’mores and handed them to Hunter and Natsumi. 

“Here you go! I’ve finished making some for you since this is your first time having s’mores!” 

Hunter and Natsumi took the treats gratefully, “Ah! Thank you, Keitaro!” Natsumi observed it, aweing over how good it looked. Hunter, excited at the thought of having something new, wasted now time in taking a bite. But when he felt the heat from the chocolate, he recoiled suddenly, shaking his head. 

“Mnn! It’s hot!”

Keitaro laughed, handing Hunter a napkin, “Slow down, Hunter!”

After blowing on them for a few minutes, they both tried the s’more without any pain. Natsumi sighed happily, smiling at the taste. Hunter quickly finished off his bite, smiling up at Keitaro, “It’s yummy!”

Natsumi smiled, turning to look at Hiro, “I’ve got to hand it to you, these are delicious!”

Yoichi was busy scarfing down his own, his eyes shut in indifference, “Hmph! I guess it’s not that bad.”

Keitaro smiled, turning to stare at the fire. He wasn’t too hungry at the moment, having already eaten something rather filling. But his mind was still occupied on what had happened earlier. Hunter took notice of his behavior, and placed a worried hand on his shoulder, “Keitaro? You’re not eating. Is something wrong?”

Natsumi’s brows furrowed with worry, “Are you still thinking about what happened with Taiga?” 

Hiro’s head snapped up, looking at Keitaro in shock, “Huh?  _ What happened!? _ Did that Taiga say something mean to you again, Keitaro?!”

Keitaro shook his head, giving Hiro a reassuring smile, “N-No! It was just a little misunderstanding!”

Natsumi sighed, leaning back and closing his eyes, “Taiga wasn’t always like that… he’s quite different today than who he was last summer camp. But he’s been acting really weird ever since you two joined camp.”

Hiro snorted, crossing his arms angrily, “Ugh! What’s his problem then?!”

Keitaro reached out to take Hiro’s hand, patting it reassuringly, “Calm down, Hiro. I’m sure Taiga doesn’t mean any of it.”

Hiro huffed, squeezing Keitaro’s hand back, “What did he say to you?”

Keitaro sighed, looking down at the ground with embarrassment, “I accidentally picked up his marshmallow bag and he thought I was stealing from him… I swear, I didn’t know.. I was just trying to get-”

“Tch! Come on! If you wanted marshmallows so much, you could’ve just asked me!  _ Here! _ ”

Pulling Keitaro from Hiro’s grasp, Yoichi held up a new bag of marshmallows in front of him. Keitaro gasped in shock, looking down at the bag of sweets. Wasn’t this the bag that Ms. Yuri gave to...

“O-Oh! W-Where did you get this, Yoichi?” He asked, but Yoichi just snorted. 

“It doesn’t matter where I got it okay? Just take the damn bag already!”

Keitaro smiled warmly, taking the bag gently, “That's so thoughtful of you! Thank you, Yoichi! You’re really a nice person after all!”

Yoichi blushed darkly, scoffing at Keitaro’s cheesy proclamation, “H-Hey! D-Don’t go all softy, softy on me! It doesn’t mean anything!”

Natsumi snorted, “Softy… softy?”

“SHUT UP!!! You’re all stupid!”

Hiro grinned brightly, “Nice timing, Wolfboy! We can roast a few extra marshmallows, thanks to you!”

Hiro reached out and took the bag, Yoichi snapping at him, “H-Hey!! That’s not for you!”

Keitaro placed a gentle hand on Yoichi’s shoulder, giving him a warm smile, “It’s okay, Yoichi. We can all share it!” 

With the new bag of marshmallows at their disposal, they all made another round of s’mores. They moved into talking about whatever had come to mind, telling jokes and funny stories in front of the fire. As Hiro began telling a story about a prank he pulled back in school, Keitaro sat back and looked on. 

Yoichi was at the edge of his seat, taking in the details of the prank. Natsumi was asking how he didn’t get in trouble, and Hunter was trying to contain his giggles when Hiro got to the part where they executed the prank. 

Keitaro chuckled, smiling fondly at them. 

_ This is such a new experience for me. Eating and joking around with friends over a warm campfire. Even though I was full from having two dinners in one night. I completely forgot about how upset I was earlier thanks to everyone’s company.  _

A warm blush spread across his cheeks. 

_ I’m really glad to have all these friends around me! _

* * *

An hour had passed, and the moon was hanging high in the sky. Scouts were starting to show signs of drowsiness, yawning and quietness befalling. 

Yoshi called for the scout to wrap everything up and to prepare for bed. When he made the announcement, Keitaro stretched himself out, letting out a small yawn. 

Hiro was laying flat on the ground, his hands over his stomach. He rubbed it gently, his lips pursed with discomfort. 

“Ouch… my tummy hurts again…”

Natsumi chuckled, reaching down to pat Hiro’s head, “You kept stuffing marshmallows in your mouth. I can’t believe how much you could fit in there!”

Hunter giggled, nodding in agreement, “Hiro looked like a hamster.”

Yoichi leaned back throwing his hands behind his head as he leaned against the log, “More like a fireball, hehe!”

Hiro only groaned, waving them all off, “I don’t have enough energy to respond to any of that… I just wanna go to bed…”

Hunter smiled, standing up from the log and walking over to Hiro’s side. 

“Our tent’s ready, Hiro. Come with me.” Hunter held out his hands, Hiro reaching up weakly to take them. Hunter pulled Hiro to his feet, taking the sleepy scout away and into the tent. 

Natsumi yawned, rubbing his eyes, “Shall we go to sleep as well?”

Yoichi rose a brow, “Eh? We’re all sleeping… together?” 

Natsumi nodded, “Yeah, Yoichi. Just like how we sleep together in one cabin!”

Yoichi shook his head, “No, I mean… in one bed?”

Natsumi nodded again, a smile illuminating his face, “Yeah! Isn’t it great?”

Yoichi opened his mouth to say something, but closed it quickly. He sat there for a few seconds, pondering over something, before shaking his head in defeat. 

“Know what? Nevermind.”

He stood up and stuffed his hands in his pockets, walking into the tent without another word. Natsumi stood as well, turning to Keitaro, “How about you, Keitaro?”

Keitaro shook his head, “Is it okay if I stay out here for a while? I want to enjoy the fresh night air.”

Natsumi shook his head, “Ah, of course! If you don’t mind, I’ll go ahead then.”

“Sure, Natsumi!”

The bluenette grinned, “Don’t stay out too late! We don’t want you to catch a cold!”

Keitaro nodded, and Natsumi excused himself, filing into the tent. 

Keitaro took a deep breath in, smelling the slowly burning out fire and dampness of the air. He held his breath for a moment, before exhaling slowly. 

Night was his favorite time. The sounds of the crickets, the croaking of frogs, the stars in the sky, all of it. He sat silently, taking in deep, calming breaths. 

“Keitaro! Aren’t you tired yet?”

Keitaro turned at the sound of Yoshi’s voice. The scoutmaster sat down next to him, and he shook his head, “Oh, I was just getting some fresh air, sir!”

“Ah, I see.”

Yoshi took in a deep breath, his brows furrowing in concern, “Yuri told me about what happened earlier with you and Taiga. I apologize on his behalf.”

“Oh.” Keitaro looked at his scoutmaster with concern. So that’s what Yuri and Yoshi were whispering about at the campfire.

Yoshi’s gaze only darkened, “I hope you don’t get upset over the things Taiga has said to you…”

Keitaro shook his head, his hair fluttering about, “Don't worry, Scoutmaster Yoshi! I won’t! Besides, I’m already surrounded by wonderful people!”

Yoshi’s eyes widened for a moment, before a warm smile spread on his face. He reached up and patted Keitaro’s head, ruffling his hair like Yuri had. 

“That’s the spirit! I’m amazed at how positive you can be! You’re really something else, Keitaro!”

Keitaro laughed nervously, rubbing his cheek, “T-Thank you, Scoutmaster Yoshi!”

“Now, off to bed with you. It’s getting pretty late, and I don't want you to be tired for our activities tomorrow!”

Keitaro nodded, standing up and giving him a small bow, “A-Ah, yes! Good night, Scoutmaster Yoshi!”

Keitaro turned around and skipped off, entering his tent quietly. His cabin mates were already dressed for bed, all lying down. Hunter was doing some light reading while Hiro and Yoichi were arguing over space. 

Keitaro sighed, quickly changing into his pajamas. Without a word, he settled himself in between Hiro and Hunter, putting a blockade between Hiro and Yoichi. Hunter smiled at him gratefully, and Yoichi just huffed, flopping down onto the ground. 

Hiro curled into Keitaro’s side, and Keitaro noticed Natsumi was already fast asleep. 

When Hunter had put his book away, and the tent was silent. Keitaro felt his drowsiness overtake him. 

Right before he fell asleep, Keitaro heard what he swore was a phone ringing. But he was too tired to get out and see what it was. All he heard was a few faint words before he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

_ “Hello? Oh… sir!” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PHEW! Chapter 3 done! And a month in the works!  
> *passes out*  
> Sorry for how long this took! One, these days in the game are just... long af when you write them out. And two...  
> My AC in my house broke during the time of year when it actually gets hot, so I had a burnout. Quite literally XD.   
> But it's getting fixed on Wednsday, and I pursed through the heat to finish Day 3!  
> Sooo, we got a little glimpsey glimpse on a plan I've got for Keitaro~   
> Seems that he has some trouble being alone, specifically in the woods. How very interesting~   
> I loved writing the Taiga bit in this chapter. I've always pictured Taiga looking desperate whenever he speaks to Keitaro, since he, as we all know, doesn't understand why people can't treat him in the same way. Keitaro's gonna do everything in his power to make Taiga happy. I'm sooooo excited to get to Day 8, that's when things get gooood.   
> And if you reaaaally paid attention, you'll notice when a "choice" in the games comes up; if you chose one that'll effect one love interest, I've made up a unique answer, like the survival question or how Keitaro tackled getting lost. But, if you have a choice that only effects one character, put with different results, I picked the highest point option, like with Hiro's dinner, the campfire, ect.   
> That's how it'll be till Day 8 and we get to the real meat of Keitaro's Route. 
> 
> Well, It's late and I have work, so I'm gonna crash for the night. I hope you enjoyed Day 3, and I can't wait to share more!
> 
> For updates on Sleepsong, and just Camp Buddy shenanigans all together, check out my Twitter @TiraminaFW! 
> 
> Let's make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	5. Day 4: Seeds of Doubt

It was warm. 

Soft. Comfortable. Peaceful. 

Keitaro was still asleep, but inklings of consciousness began to stir within him. Why was it so warm? And what was on his face?

“Hnn…”

Keitaro felt the gentleness of the sun tickle his face, gently pulling him from his slumber. He didn’t want to wake up. He tried to turn his head away from the light, but felt something push against his cheek. 

“Eh…?”

Blinking rapidly, Keitaro’s eyes fluttered open. He was met with the roof of the tent, and the sounds of peaceful breathing all around him. He tried to sit up. 

But couldn’t move a muscle. 

“W… What?”

Keitaro’s eyes opened all the way, and he found himself trapped in a pile with his cabin-mates. 

“W-Waahhh!”

Keitaro cried in shock, panicking for a few seconds when he tried to move his arms but couldn’t. When he turned his head again, he saw the thing on his cheek…

Was Yoichi’s foot. 

Looking down, he saw that Yoichi had somehow, someway, threaded his whole leg underneath his shirt and had his foot resting against his face. How did that happen? 

Keitaro squirmed again, trying to look down and see Yoichi’s face. 

“Y-Yoichi!”

Keitaro whispered his name, not wanting to wake the others. But the violette only snored, grumbling in his sleep. 

_ “Hnrrmmm… s-stupid Keitaro…” _

Keitaro sighed, letting his head fall back on his pillow, “E-Everyone’s still asleep…”

He tried to move again. 

“Nnn! I can’t get up!”

Keitaro looked around, trying to see if anyone had been disturbed by his talking, “Ummm… is anyone awake yet?”

He was answered with silence. 

A mumble sounded off in his ear, and Keitaro looked to his right, seeing Hiro buried into his side, his arms wrapped around his shoulders. The boy was drooling happily, a soft smile on his face as he dreamt. 

_ “You go away… K-Keitaro’s mine…” _

Keitaro couldn’t help but smile, always finding Hiro’s sleep talking habits endearing. 

“Aww… Hiro’s still dreaming.”

Hiro snuggled closer to Keitaro, allowing him a view of Natsumi. The bluenette’s hand was on Keitaro’s shoulder, holding a gentle grip on his tank top. He was undisturbed by Keitaro’s talking, sleeping peacefully. 

“Wow… Natsumi’s still asleep over there… a-and Hunter is… clinging to me…”

Keitaro glanced to his left to see the small blonde curled into his side, holding onto his arm like a stuffed animal. His cheek rested against Keitaro’s bicep, his soft features gently shining with the rising sun outside. 

While Keitaro found everyone’s sleeping adorable, he still had a single question on his mind. 

“How did our sleeping positions end up like this?”

Keitaro tried once more to wiggle his way to freedom. But it only resulted in Hiro and Hunter tightening their grips, Natsumi pulling on his shirt, and Yoichi rolling onto his side, twisting his shirt more and locking him in place. 

Keitaro let out a gentle whimper, realizing his attempts at freedom were all for naught. 

As Keitaro subjected himself to his fate, a loud whistle rang through the air. 

Keitaro jumped, squeezing his eyes shut when the flap to their tent opened and Yoshi stepped inside, unfazed at his predicament. 

“Scouts! It’s time to wake up! I want you all to be ready in fifteen minutes! I’ll be waiting for everyone outside. So get moving!” 

He gave his whistle one last blow before leaving, Keitaro yawned deeply. He wiggled his hand up, taking Hiro by the shoulder and shaking him. 

“H-Hiro… wake up!” 

As Yoshi continued to blow his whistle outside, Hiro snorted and lifted his head. He rubbed his cheek, groaning to himself, “Mann… what’s with all the noise?”

Without any effort, Natsumi slowly sat up next to Hiro, stretching his arms up. 

“Scoutmaster Yoshi said it’s time to get up!” 

Hiro groaned, dropping his head back down onto Keitaro’s arm, “But it’s still so early… five more minutes please… it’s so comfortable here…”

Natsumi shook his head, poking Hiro in the back “Come on now, a scout always wakes up early!”

Hiro’s torso arched as he swatted Natsumi’s hand away. He finally sat up completely, freeing Keitaro of two weights, leaving Hunter and Yoichi. 

“Hmmm… Fineeee…” 

Hiro yawned, “I’m kinda hungry anyway…” 

When Hiro rolled away, Hunter stirred in his sleep. He let out a small yawn and sat up, rubbing his eyes. 

“Good morning, Hunter!” Natsumi chirped, already full of energy and ready to start the day. 

Hunter didn’t respond. Didn’t even seem to hear him. 

“I think he’s only half-awake…” Keitaro chuckled, watching Hunter blindly sit up and sit down, still rubbing his eyes. One more arm free. Now all that was left was the leg stuck up his shirt. 

“I’m gonna go look for some food outside. Wanna come with me, Hunter?” Hiro asked, offering a hand to the blonde. 

Hunter nodded, taking Hiro’s hand and allowing him to pull him to his feet. Hiro helped Hunter step over Keitaro and Yoichi, guiding him out of the tent to grab some food. 

Keitaro sighed, looking down at the foot still up against his cheek, “How about Yoichi?” 

Natsumi sighed, standing to his feet. He looked down at Yoichi, who was still sleeping soundly. 

“Yoichi! It’s time to wake up!” He chirped, clapping his hands together. 

Yoichi snarled, rolling over onto his side, taking Keitaro with him. 

Natsumi frowned, crossing his arms with a snort, “If you don’t get up, I’m going to call the scoutmasters!”

Yoichi popped an eye open, glaring at Natsumi for a few seconds. After a quick stare-down, Yoichi curled back into Keitaro’s leg and flipped Natsumi the bird.

“Yoichi!!” Natsumi snapped, taken aback by Yoichi’s rude gesture. 

When Yoichi rolled back over, Natsumi let out a heavy sigh, “Mann… it’s so hard waking you up. Keitaro, could you give me a hand?”

Keitaro nodded, sitting up to the best of his ability. He looked down at Yoichi, clearing his throat gently. 

“Uhh… Yoichi?”

At the sound of his voice, Yoichi raised his head. He stared at Keitaro for a few seconds before sighing in defeat. He un-threaded his foot from under Keitaro’s shirt, finally freeing the boy. 

“Alright! Fine! I’m up! Geez, you two really know how to ruin a morning.” 

Yoichi rose to his feet, stretching himself out to let his back pop. Without saying anything, Yoichi trudged out of the tent, leaving Natsumi slack-jawed. 

“Wow. That was fast! I think that’s the shortest time it’s ever taken to get him up. Maybe you should be in charge of waking him up next time, haha!” Natsumi exclaimed, Keitaro slowly climbing to his feet. 

As Keitaro stretched, Natsumi glanced outside, “We should be heading out now, though. Scoutmaster woke us up earlier than usual… I wonder if everything is alright.”

Keitaro nodded, letting out a yawn in response. Natsumi opened the flap to the tent, moving aside so that Keitaro could step out into the sun. He sighed deeply, greeting the morning sun warmly. 

Before he could bask any further, Keitaro noticed the commotion occurring at the other tents. 

Everyone else was packing their things to leave. 

Keitaro watched Hiro step up behind him, giving a concerned glance to Natsumi, “Hey uhh… Natsumi? Why is everyone preparing to leave already?”

Hunter nodded in agreement, “It seems that everyone else has packed their things sooner…”

Natsumi’s head whirled around in confusion, “Huh? What’s going on? If I remember our schedule correctly, we should have another activity this morning!”

Before Natsumi or anyone else could question what was happening, a thunderous laugh rang out. 

The five turned to see Taiga marching over to them, a sly grin on his face. 

“Hah! These fools don’t even know what’s going on! That’s what you get for waking up so late~!” 

The flame-haired scout sneered at them, Eduard and Lee at his sides to push the buttons even more. 

“Look at them and their bed hair, eww!” Eduard stuck out his tongue and gagged, Lee chuckling beside him, “A pity. We’ve awakened from our slumber way before any of you!” 

Eduard nodded, “Not to mention we’re already dressed up! Look how prim and proper we are!” 

Lee sneered, stepping up closer to Taiga’s side, “They’re obviously not nearly as punctual as us, Taiga!” 

Taiga chuckled, directing his attention towards Natsumi, “Even you, Natsumi? What’s going on with you? I thought you were the  _ best _ scout around?”

The tall scout winced, looking down shamefully, “N-No… that’s not…”

Lee shook his head, turning to whisper to Taiga, “Keitaro’s incompetence is certainly contagious!” 

Taiga sniggered, finally causing Hiro to snap in anger, “HEY! Who said you could talk to Keitaro like that?! Wolfboy,  _ say something!” _

Yoichi let out a small snore. 

Hiro’s jaw dropped in disbelief at how he was asleep standing, and it only caused Taiga to erupt with laughter. 

“HAHAHA! You people are hopeless! If  _ I _ were you, I’d be rushing to pack up, unless you wanna be the only ones left behind!”

Natsumi shook his head, “I don’t understand… if our schedule was correct, we should only leave three hours from now... did one of the scoutmasters change the schedule?”

Taiga shook his head, shrugging his shoulders, “We’re always one step ahead of everyone here! Don’t forget that!”

Lee hummed in agreement, “Thanks to Taiga, we acquired some reliable information last night!”

Eduard nodded, “Good luck on our walk back to camp in your pajamas!”

Natsumi opened his mouth to talk once more, but Taiga held up a hand, gesturing to Yoshi, “Hear it from the scoutmaster yourselves, losers! Come on, Eduard, Lee.”

Taiga spun on his heel, shooting Keitaro one last glance. They held eye contact for a second, the pain and malice clear in his eyes. It made Keitaro shudder in fear, but he held the gaze despite it. 

Taiga snorted, sticking his nose up and marching away, Lee and Eduard flanking his sides. 

Once out of sight, Hiro let out a screech of frustration. 

“GRRAA! I really hate those three! I swear, I am  _ this _ close to beating them up!” Hiro shouted and swung his arms around angrily, emphasizing his desire for bodily harm. Keitaro looked over at him with eyes of disbelief, grabbing his arm to hold him back. 

“H-Hiro! That’s enough!” The brunette gripped his arm sternly, giving Hiro a hard stare. Natsumi walked up to the other side of Hiro, nodding in agreement. 

“We shouldn’t involve ourselves in a fight-”

“You’re big enough, Natsumi. Plus, we outnumber them! I’m sure we could totally kick their butts!”

“HIRO!” 

Keitaro grabbed both of Hiro’s arms, staring at the boy with a now stern glare. Natsumi shook his head in disappointment, “Violence never solves anything. Would you fight them, and, in the process, stoop down to their level as well?”

Hiro let out a whine, turning to Yoichi for backup, “Hey, Wolfboy! Would you get up already?! We can’t let them get away with this!”

Yoichi snored. 

Hiro’s jaw dropped once more, and he finally let out a sigh in defeat. Keitaro rubbed his back reassuringly, “It’s alright, Hiro. Let’s not waste out time on getting angry at them…”

Hiro looked up at Keitaro, wanting to press the matter further. But one look from Keitaro’s big, emerald eyes was enough for Hiro to lower his head. 

“You know I can’t say no to you…” He huffed, but let a small smile crawl onto his face, “Fine. I’ll let this one slide…”

Keitaro flashed a toothy grin, warming Hiro’s heart at the sight. 

After calming him, Keitaro turned to Natsumi, a look of worry etched in his brows, “But are we really heading back to camp early? I really thought we’d spend a lot more time outdoors.”

Natsumi shook his head, casting a glance towards the scoutmaster’s tent, “I’m not entirely sure. I guess we can ask the scoutmaster once he’s in a position to say…”

The five all stood in silence, not sure what to do. Everyone was packing up their things, but hearing the word from Taiga alone made them a bit skeptical in it’s authenticity. It wasn’t until Yoshi walked to the middle of the campsite and cleared his throat loudly that the event was confirmed. 

“Attention, everyone! There has been a change in plans!”

Keitaro’s eyes widened. 

“Our trailblazing and scouting activities have been cancelled for today. For those who have not changed into their trekking gear and pack up their things, please do so immediately! We’ll be heading back to Camp Buddy shortly. I sincerely apologize, but this is an urgent matter. I hope you all understand.”

With that, Yoshi walked back over to Yuri to help disassemble their tent. 

Silence followed. They all exchanged looks of worry before Hunter spoke up, “So, it was true. We are going back to camp.”

Natsumi scratched his head with thought, pondering over potential reasons for their early departure. 

“This is… quite strange. They don't usually cancel big activities like this unless there’s bad weather... but, I guess orders are orders…”

“It puzzles me why Taiga and the others knew about it before you, Natsumi,” Hunter, voiced, lowering his head in thought. Hiro nodded in agreement, “Yeah! You’re like Scoutmaster Yoshi’s right-hand guy!”

Natsumi turned away, “I really don’t know… I’m sorry…”

Keitaro shook his head, placing a hand on Natsumi’s shoulder, “I guess that doesn’t matter for now. Let’s go get changed so we can catch up with everyone.”

Natsumi nodded, giving Keitaro a weak smile, “R-Right! We don’t want to get left behind!”

* * *

The walk back to camp was mostly silent. Many of the scouts were pondering over what could’ve canceled such a big trip so suddenly. Whispers echoed across the groups as they passed through the forest, rumors and theories beginning to spread. 

Keitaro wondered to himself why they had to leave. The look on Yoshi’s face the entire way back was proof enough that something serious might have been going on. He wanted to ask, but figured it was a bad idea to stick his nose in places it didn’t belong. So despite his curiosity, he left it alone. 

When they reached the entrance arch, Keitaro let out a heavy sigh of relief. The sudden trek after just waking up had tired him out, and all he wanted to do was rest. Dropping his bag to his feet, Keitaro stretched his arms up and out, letting his spine pop a few times. 

Hiro was the first to talk after their hike, sighing blissfully at the sight of the arch. 

“Ahhh… it’s kinda nice to be back,” He admitted, rubbing the back of his head. 

Keitaro nodded, but couldn’t help but still feel disappointed at their early departure, “I really wanted to explore more, though.”

Natsumi skipped up to his side, patting his back, “Don’t worry, Keitaro. I’m sure we’ll have another activity to make up for it soon.”

Keitaro smiled at Natsumi thankfully while Hiro skipped up to Keitaro’s side, “Look on the bright side! The mess hall is just over there! We can eat as much as we want! You won’t  _ believe _ how hungry I am from all that walking!”

Keitaro chuckled, patting Hiro’s head. He was about to respond when something under the entrance arch caught his eye. 

Or someone. 

When Keitaro looked again, a tall, stocky man was standing under the arch, his face twisted into a harsh scowl. He was wearing a white and grey business suit with a matching grey tie and blank pants. He had well kept white hair that greyed as it reached his sideburns and beard. 

“U-Um… who’s that?” Keitaro asked, pointing to the man nervously. When Natsumi and Hiro looked up, Natsumi let out a small gasp, covering his mouth in shock. 

_ “Oh no…” _

Keitaro turned to Natsumi, concern written all over his face. 

“Where have you all been?”

Before Keitaro could ask Natsumi any more, the man snapped at them. Every scout turned to him in shock, many wincing and cowering back at his presence. 

Yoshi looked at the man in disbelief, stepping up towards the man. 

“Sir Goro, I-I… You’re here already!” He stammered, nervous about the man’s arrival. 

Goro. Keitaro’s ear twitched when Yoshi addressed him, catching the man’s name. Goro, who was he?

“I knew it. You left camp grounds again without my permission. What kind of scoutmaster _are_ _you_?”

“S-Sir Goro, I can explain!”

“Haven’t you learned your lesson already?”

“Dad. Please. Not in front of the campers.”

As Yoishi and Goro went back and forth, Yuri stepped in-between them, turning to Goro gently, yet sternly. She called him Dad. Keitaro’s eyes widened. This man was Yuri’s father? He looked so intimidating next to her; he looked like he could snap any of them in half!

But, the man seemed to back down, if only a little, at Yuri’s request. He turned to Yoshi again, his brows furrowing more, “In my office. Now, Yoshinori!”

“R-Right…”

Keitaro watched in shock as Yoshi gave up against the man, bowing his head and walking off dejectedly. Was he in trouble? If so, why? 

Goro followed after him, the two disappearing into the scoutmaster’s cabin. Keitaro wanted to say something, but Yuri spoke up before he could. 

“Ah, everyone! Please return to your cabins and get some rest! You must be tired from all that walking! You all may have the rest of the day to yourselves! So try and make it a productive one, okay?”

Keitaro nodded, watching Natsumi walk up to the front of the group, clapping his hands together, “Alright! Everyone heard that, right? Let’s move! Let’s move!”

The scouts all followed suit, picking up their bags and moving into their respective cabins. 

Keitaro slung his bag over his shoulder, following Natsumi silently. Hiro and Hunter chatted with each other quietly as they walked, Yoichi shuffling behind them tiredly. Concern filled Keitaro’s heart as they made their way to their cabin. Something was wrong. Definitely wrong. He didn’t know what it was, but the mere presence of that man, Goro, both scared the campers, Yoshi, and even concerned Yuri. 

What did him coming to the camp mean? Keitaro wanted to ask Natsumi, as he seemed perturbed by Goro’s arrival as well. 

When they got into their cabin, everyone went to their beds and began to unpack their things. Keitaro kept sneaking glances at Natsumi, the tall bluenette seemingly lost in his thoughts. Wanting to break the awkward silence, Keitaro cleared his throat. 

“Is everything alright, Natsumi?” 

The air went stagnant. Questions hung in the air at Keitaro’s inquiry, everyone else wanting to know the same thing. Hiro was next to speak. 

“Yeah… what was with that scary old guy?” 

Hunter nodded, standing next to Hiro worriedly, “Who was that man, Natsumi?”

Natsumi sighed heavily, knowing his friends would ask him about it. He turned to them slowly, sitting down on his bed, “That was Mr. Goro Nomoru. He’s Scoutmaster Yuri’s father as well as the founder of Camp Buddy.”

Keitaro’s eyes widened, “Oh! He’s the guy who started Camp Buddy?” 

Natsumi nodded. Hiro winced, rubbing his arms nervously, “He doesn’t give me the same friendly vibes like Ms. Yuri, though. He seems really scary!”

Natsumi hummed, placing his hands on his knees, “He comes here occasionally to check on the status of the camp, like funding, accommodations, management, things like that. And of course to visit his daughter too.”

Keitaro nodded in understanding, sitting on the opposite side of Natsumi’s bed. He scratched his cheek, giving him another confused look, “Oh… I see. Why was he scolding Scoutmaster Yoshi then?”

Natsumi lowered his head, “I’m sorry, Keitaro… but that is beyond my knowledge. What I do know is that Sir Goro doesn’t have the best impression of Scoutmaster Yoshi. I supposed you could say Sir Goro doesn’t like how Scoutmaster Yoshi runs this place.”

Keitaro looked up in shock, “I don’t get it… Scoutmaster Yoshi is such a nice person. And he didn’t do anything wrong…”

Hunter nodded in agreement, “Are we going to get in trouble too? Is there something we should do?” 

Natsumi shook his head, “No, Hunter. This is a private matter for the scoutmasters. None of you have to worry about this.”

Keitaro lowered his head, lost in thought. Natsumi was hiding something from them all, he could tell. But he didn’t want to press the matter and make him upset. Keitaro sighed, reaching out and patting Natsumi’s arm and giving Hunter and Hiro a warm smile. 

“Well, I’m not sure what’s going on. I know something might be going on but, if you or the scoutmasters need anything, just let me know, okay? I wanna be there for them too!” 

Natsumi blushed, moved by his compassionate words. Hunter and Hiro both smiled warmly, their hearts beating quicker at Keitaro’s desire to help. After falling into a more comfortable silence, Hiro looked around, noticing something off in the room. 

“Wait a minute…”

They all turned to him. 

“It’s… weirdly quiet today.”

Everyone exchanged glances. 

“Where the hell is Wolfboy?”

Letting out small ‘ohs’ in understanding, they finally noticed the missing scout in the cabin. Yoichi had seemingly disappeared after they got back. 

“H-He’s asleep over there…”

They turned to Hunter, who was pointing at one of the bunks off to the side. They followed his finger to see Yoichi slumbering away in his bed. Keitaro’s eyes widened in shock. 

Yoichi had somehow, without them noticing: unpacked his things, got undressed, got in bed, and fell asleep. 

Natsumi looked at him with confusion, “Hm? Since when did he get changed?”

Natsumi voiced what they were all thinking, staring at the violette like he was an alien. Keitaro was about to see if he could maybe wake him up and ask him, but Hiro’s stomach grumbled loudly. 

“All this talk is making me hungry. We’re allowed to go to the mess hall. Right, Natsumi?” Hiro asked, patting his stomach. 

Natsumi chuckled, “Yeah. It’s open most of the time. I’m sure Sir Aiden’s already prepared something delicious for you there.”

Hiro whopped loudly, Yoichi lying undisturbed, “Hey, let’s go eat! You guys coming?”

Hunter shook his head, “I’ll pass this time. My legs are too tired to take me anywhere else, I’ll just stay here and rest.”

Hiro nodded, turning to Natsumi, “How about you, Natsumi?”

The tall camper shook his head, an apologetic smile on his face, “Oh! I’m sorry, but I have some chores to finish first!”

Hiro’s jaw dropped, “What?! But it’s our free day!”

Keitaro nodded in agreement, standing up from the bed, “Yeah, Natsumi. You should sit back and relax for a while.”

Natsumi smiled, “Scoutmaster Yuri told us to try and be productive, remember? Don’t worry; I’ll relax as soon as my chores are all finished.” 

Hiro huffed in defeat, “Oh well, suit yourselves. Me and Keitaro are going ahead!”

“W-Wha- Wait, Hiro-!”

Keitaro yelped when Hiro grabbed his hand and suddenly ran, pulling him out of the cabin. 

Natsumi watched them leave, letting out a heavy sigh once everyone was either gone or asleep. He placed a hand on his chest. 

“Phew… that was close…”

* * *

Keitaro giggled as Hiro skipped along the path, jumping in excitement as they neared the mess hall. 

“Mmm~! I can smell the food from here! Last one there’s a rotten egg! HAHAHA!” 

Hiro bounded forward, throwing his arms out like an airplane. Keitaro jumped up, tripping over his feet in attempts to keep up with his hyper-active friend. 

“H-Hey, Hiro! Wait up!”

But Hiro had already disappeared. 

“Ah… even after all that hiking he’s energetic as-”

_ “HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU?! YOU’RE JUST WASTING YOUR TIME!!” _

Keitaro jumped in fright at the sound of a loud, booming voice. He whirled around in circles, searching for another person in the area. 

“Eh? Where’s that coming from?”

He listened again. 

_ “I know I’m wrong. But I just wanted to show the new recruits a good impression!” _

Keitaro rose his head, “Th-That sounds like…”

He slowly walked towards the sound of the voice, approaching the scoutmasters’ cabin quietly. He saw one of the windows were ever so slightly cracked, sitting ajar. 

Keitaro lowered himself down, staying out of sight of the window. Moving as close as he could, he carefully peered in. 

Yoshi and Goro!

He saw Yoshi turn his head, and he quickly ducked away out of the window, pressing his back against the outer wall. His heart was hammering in his chest. This was wrong. He shouldn’t be eavesdropping. But with what Natsumi had said earlier, about how Goro felt about Yoshi, Keitaro couldn’t help himself. 

His ear twitched as he listened on. 

_ “Enough! You had your chance! If it wasn’t for Yuri backing you up, I would’ve gotten rid of you a LONG time ago!” _

Keitaro gasped at Goro’s threat. 

_ “And then I find out that you and the campers went outside camp grounds, without my permission yesterday!” _

They… they weren’t supposed to have gone on that trip? Yoshi spoke next. 

_ “B-But…” _

_ “You’re always, ‘but this, and but that’! You told me Springfield’s batch was going to be the last one! AND YET YOU BRING IN TWO MORE?! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!” _

Keitaro jolted. He was talking about them! Hiro and himself were technically… not supposed to be here. What was going on?

_ “But they’re good boys! They won’t be anything like the previous ones, I swear!” _

Previous ones? 

_ “If you could just give me one last chance. Please! They really are different this time!”  _

He heard Goro sigh with disappointment. 

_ “I don’t know if I can trust you again, Yoshinori. You’ve always neglected everything I ordered you to do! Don’t you realize how much trouble you’ve caused with last year’s incident?” _

Incident? What incident? 

_ “It was such an embarrassment! And based on your recent actions, it seems to me that you want to screw things up all over again!” _

He heard Yoshi reply, sounding desperate. 

_ “But… I promised to keep them, sir-” _

A bang sounded from inside the office, like fists hitting the table. 

_ “You still won’t listen to me?!” _

_ “But, sir! Please let me have another chance! I want to make up for my shortcomings as a scoutmaster!”  _

_ “I’ve already given you this last chance. But if you’re not going to listen to me, I’ll be forced to close this camp down. FOR GOOD!” _

Keitaro winced. 

_ This is getting bad… I shouldn’t stay here anymore.  _

He needed to leave before-

“There you are, Keitaro!”’

_ Oh no! _

Keitaro twisted around in fear at the sound of Hiro’s voice. His friend was looking right at him, and approaching him at a quick pace. 

“Keitaro? What are you doing over-”

“SHHHH! Hiro, be quiet!”

Keitaro jumped away from the wall and pushed Hiro away from the building, leaving the orangette confused. 

“Eh? What’s going on? I was waiting for you at the mess hall for a while. You totally ditched me!”

Keitaro shook his head, “N-No! I was just about to follow you!”

Hiro cocked a brow. 

“Behind the scoutmaster’s cabin? The mess hall is in the other direction, you know.”

Keitaro chuckled nervously, “Y-Yeah… I was… exploring?”

“Oh, really?”

Hiro turned around, looking Keitaro deep in the eyes. 

“Hmmmm…”

Keitaro flashed his best smile. 

“You’re a really bad liar, Keitaro.”

Keitaro winced. 

“I’ve known you for so long! I can tell when you’re lying to me. Come on. Tell me what you’re REALLY doing back here,” He demanded, crossing his arms. Keitaro twiddled his thumbs together like a nervous child, trying to find the right way to word his eavesdropping. 

“Ooooh! What do we have here?!”

The two boys whirled around in freight, seeing Yuri standing a few meters from them. 

“Scoutmaster Yuri! W-We were uhhh…” Keitaro tried to think of an excuse, but Yuri put a hand on her chin in thought. 

“Suspicious behavior… hiding in an unusual spot?”

Keitaro shook his head, “I-I can explain! I-I was-”

_ “You two much be on a SECRET DATE! _ ”

Silence followed. Hiro blinked rapidly in shock, “Eh?”

Keitaro shook his head, a blush coming to his cheeks, “No, no, Ms. Yuri! That’s not what this is!”

Yuri let out a gentle laugh, putting a hand on her chest. She shook her head, waving her hand at them, “Hihi! I’m just kidding! Sooooo… what brings you two here then?”

Keitaro began to panic, still unable to find a good and believable excuse. He looked around, trying to get ideas from his surroundings. 

“We were just…. Uh-”

“Keitaro was just taking pictures of all the pretty flowers in the area, Ms. Yuri! R-Right, Keitaro?”

Hiro threw his arms in front of Keitaro, proclaiming a false reason for their snooping. Keitaro jumped in fright, looking at Hiro with confusion. 

“Ummm…”

Hiro frowned, leaning back to get closer to Keitaro’s ear,  _ “Keitaro! Help me out here! I’m trying to cover for you…!” _

Keitaro’s eyes widened, and he nodded vigorously. 

Yuri snorted, “Partners in crime, I see.”

The two looked up at her nervously, but she only raised a brow teasingly, “Well, I guess I should just leave such private matters between friends. But if you two need a little privacy to have fun, I know a place~”

“M-MS. YURI!” Hiro’s face flushed darkly in embarrassment at Yuri’s offer. She giggled at their faces, deciding to stop messing with them and get on with what she had seeked them out for. 

“But, in any case, I was looking for you, Keitaro. I wanted you to have this.”

Yuri reached into a small bag on her side Keitaro hadn’t noticed and pulled out a green book. Dusting it off a bit, Yuri held out it to Keitaro. 

“It’s your very own journal! You can write anything you want here!”

Keitaro looked at the book with sparkling eyes, reaching out to take gently. Hiro raised a brow, looking up at the scoutmaster skeptically, “Isn’t it a lot easier if you just give us our phones back?”

Yuri shook her head, “But you won’t be able to cherish it as much if you don’t write it with your own hands. Just like how Keitaro’s camera prints out captured moments instantly. It feels more sentimental that way!”

She turned to Keitaro, “I’ve been observing you for the past few days, and I always see you use your camera to take pictures of anything that interests you. You seem to be the kind of person who cherishes wonderful memories! So I figured it would be nice to give you a journal!”

“W… Wow…” Keitaro opened the journal, gently caressing the clean, blank pages. He’d never had a journal before. He had thought about it in the past, but never had the drive to actually go out and buy one.

“And, you can attach your photos here whenever you write an entry too! Getting your feelings written down on paper feels much better than keeping them to yourself. Isn’t that right?”

Keitaro bobbed his head up and down, clutching the journal to his chest tightly, “Yes! I agree, Ms. Yuri! Thank you so much! I promise I’ll write down the whole story of my summer here! OH! And I can start the day we joined! It’s going to be my ‘Personal Camp Buddy Journal’!”

Yuri chuckled at Keitaro’s excitement, watching him bounce on his feet like a hyper toddler. 

“Hihi, I’m glad you like it! Now, you two run along! Make your day productive!”

Hiro nodded, taking Keitaro by the hand to lead him to the mess hall, “We will, Ms. Yuri!”

Hiro skipped off with Keitaro in tow, the boy giddy over his new journal. 

“I can’t believe I have a journal now! I’ve been thinking of getting one of these for a while now but never got around to it! Oh I wonder how I should start it off like should I write like, ‘Dear Dairy’, or… maybe ‘Journal Entry Number’... you know that sort of thing? And should I do it in first person view or maybe-”

“Woah, woah, slow down Keitaro! Let’s get some lunch first before you decide that, you’ll need the energy for all that writing!” Hiro pulled Keitaro closer and patted his shoulder, trying to calm his friend down. 

Keitaro nodded excitedly, clutching his journal to his chest like it was a baby. 

When they got to the mess hall, Hiro opened the door for him, allowing Keitaro to walk in before him. The smell of food filled their noses and made their stomachs grumble with hunger. 

Hiro skipped across the room, going to queue in line before he saw Aiden standing at one of the counters. He was fixing some of the pans and setting out new plates, doing a check of what food needed to be restocked. 

Keitaro saw that he was in uniform this time around, his color scheme being a dark green with a matching lizard patch on the breast pocket. 

At the sound of them approaching, Aiden turned his head, smiling when he saw them walking towards him. 

“Hey there!” He gave them a small wave, Hiro turning to Keitaro. 

“It’s Bro-Aiden! You’re not butt-naked today?” 

Keitaro tilted his head in confusion, “B-Bro…?” 

He wanted to ask when the two got chummy enough to have nicknames, but Aiden responded to Hiro’s question before he could, “Heh, I just finished cooking everything!”

Hiro sniggered, holding a hand in front of his mouth, “You really look like a scoutmaster when you have some clothes on!”

Keitaro held up a hand, afraid that Hiro might be offending him, but Aiden only laughed at his playful tease, “Hahaha! I know, right!”

Aiden reached out and patted Hiro’s head, ruffling his hair affectionately, “Ooooh, since you’re here, you two should get some lunch!”

Hiro clapped his hands together excitedly, drooling at the sound of food, “I’m starving! What did you make today?”

Aiden grinned, patting his chest proudly, “You boys are gonna love today’s menu! It’s fried chicken! You two better hurry while there’s still some left.”

Hiro nodded, turning to Keitaro, “Alright! I’ll go fall in line for us!”

Hiro skipped off, jumping into the line excitedly and picking up two plates for himself and Keitaro. 

Aiden chuckled, “Your friend’s really energetic, Keitaro!” 

Keitaro sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, “No one can stop him when it comes to food.”

“It feels good to see all these campers enjoying what I made,” He sighed, looking out at tables full of campers with endearment. 

Keitaro leaned against the counter next to him, thinking about how this wasn’t the only job he had. He cooked, cleaned, gardened, everything. How did he keep up with it all? 

“Aren’t you getting tired, Sir Aiden?”

Aiden looked down at him with shock, surprised at the boy’s concern for him. When Keitaro looked up at him with his big, emerald eyes, Aiden sighed heavily, his shoulders sagging.

“Actually, it’s super exhausting! I have to do laundry after this, you know? And I’ve gotta wash every bed sheet from all the cabins… thank goodness this place has washing machines!” 

Keitaro’s eyes widened in shock, “You do the laundry too!?”

Aiden nodded, “Yeah…”

Keitaro’s eyes sparkled in admiration, flashing a bright smile at the man, “Wow, you must really love Camp Buddy, Sir Aiden! “

Aiden looked up in thought, pondering over Keitaro’s statement. After a few moments, a smile crawled onto his face, “Well… yeah, I guess I’ve grown to love this place.”

Keitaro rose a brow in confusion, “W-What do you mean?”

Aiden stuffed his hands in his pockets, “Well, the reason I’m here is because I need that extra income for my studies. They pay me very well to do all of these chores! The more I do, the higher Yoshi pays me.”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, “Wow! You’re working  _ this  _ hard so that you can study?!”

Aiden nodded, “It’s kinda ironic isn’t it? I’m working on a job, to get a job.”

Keitaro shook his head wildly, grabbing Aiden’s arm and shaking it, “N-No, Sir Aiden! I think it’s a really inspiring story!”

Aiden’s eyes widened in shock, staring down at the excited boy. A smile broke on his face, “Ohh~! I’m an  _ inspiration _ now, eh?” 

Keitaro bobbed his head, “Yeah, you’re really amazing, Sir Aiden!”

Aiden’s smile grew, “Oh, you’re too kind! You know what? I never get that much appreciation around here, you really made my day!”

Aiden reached up and ruffled Keitaro’s hair, making the boy giggle happily. 

A beep grabbed their attention and Aiden looked down at his watch, wincing at the time, “Ooops! I gotta go! I need to do the laundry! Talk to you again, Keitaro!”

Aiden gave him a few more pats on the head before walking off, Keitaro waving, “Alright, Sir Aiden! Bye!”

The helper waved back and disappeared through the double doors, leaving Keitaro standing near the counter. He looked over at Hiro, who was still in line after all his talking. He hummed to himself, “Hiro’s still in line for our lunch. I should grab a seat for us.”

Keitaro pulled himself off the counter and walked around, looking for a vacant table. To his dismay, all of the tables had someone occupying them, most of them people he didn’t know. 

“Hmm… they’re all occupied… let’s see… oh!” 

Keitaro looked over and saw Seto and Felix sitting at a table alone, both eating their lunches. Remembering their meeting yesterday, Keitaro smiled to himself, twiddling his hands together, “Maybe I can ask them if we could share tables with them…”

Keitaro took in a deep breath, walking over to their table slowly. When he reached the end, he gave them a small wave in greeting, “Um… hello!”

Felix and Seto looked up in surprise. Felix remained silent while Seto gave him a half-smile, “I remember you! You’re the guy from yesterday, right?” 

Keitaro nodded happily. Seto winced, leaning across the table to whisper to Felix,  _ “What was his name again?” _

Felix facepalmed, “Keitaro.”

Seto rose back up, waving his hands, “Ah, right, right, right! So, anyway, what’s up Keitaro? You need anything?”

Keitaro put his hands behind his back, swaying in place, “O-Oh… well, I was wondering if my friend and I could sit here with you guys.”

Seto and Felix exchanged glances. They both turned back to him and nodded, Felix gesturing to the free spaces next to them, “Sure. We still have some space left.”

Keitaro smiled brightly, giving them a small bow, “Ah! Thank you!”

He skipped over and sat himself in the seat next to Felix, giving them thankful smiles. Seto grinned back, taking notice of the camera hanging around Keitaro’s neck. He rose a brow in curiosity. 

“Say, why do you always bring a camera with you? Are you a professional photographer or something?” He asked. Keitaro picked his camera up, shaking his head. 

“Oh! N-Nothing like that! I just love taking pictures of things, it’s kinda my hobby.” He explained. Seto hummed, “How did you sneak that into camp?”

Keitaro’s eyes widened, “My camera? I didn’t sneak it in. The scoutmasters let me keep it…”

Seto’s jaw dropped in disbelief, “What? I didn’t think ANY electronic devices were allowed here! They confiscated my phone the moment they gave me the welcome tour. Talk about  _ welcoming _ …”

Felix sighed heavily, his head slouching sadly, “They didn’t let me bring in my laptop either.”

Keitaro nodded, looking down at his camera with thought, “Well, if I remember correctly, it’s just devices that you can play games on or use the internet with that aren’t allowed.”

Seto huffed, leaning on his hand, “There’s no internet connection in this camp anyway. I tried logging in from my PnesP, but it was no good.”

Felix looked at Seto with shock, “Seto… you snuck in a gaming console?!” 

He only chuckled in response. 

The violet-eyed boy shook his head, rubbing his temple, “So that’s why you’re always using your headphones.”

Seto threw his hands up in surrender, patting the headphones around his next, “Hey, it can’t be helped! I need music to enjoy this place!”

Keitaro chuckled, enjoying watching the two go back and forth. He hadn’t noticed Hiro walk up behind him until he poked him in the shoulder. Keitaro whirled around in surprise, seeing Hiro holding two trays with food in his hands.

“New friends, Keitaro?” He asked, receiving a nod from the brunette.

“Y-Yeah! I forgot, you guys haven’t met-” He turned to Seto and Felix, “-He’s the one I was talking about before.”

Seto smiled, reaching out to Hiro, “Nice to meet you, I’m Seto!”

Hiro smiled back, reaching out to shake his hand. Felix looked down, twiddling his thumbs nervously, “H… Hello… I’m Felix…”

“Nice to meetcha!” Hiro chirped, placing his tray and Keitaro’s down on the table. When he sat down next to Keitaro, the boy turned to explain how they had met. 

“I actually met them by accident yesterday when I got lost in the forest.” 

Hiro nodded, “Ooooh, I see. It’s great to meet new friends! Let’s start eating then! That long line made me twice as hungry! I’m really impressed by how Bro-Aiden handles all these tasks.”

As Hiro dug into his food, Felix leaned back in his seat, his eyes closed in thought, “Hmmm… maybe this place needs to have more maids of butlers.”

Hiro looked up from his food, raising a brow in confusion, “B-Butlers? You mean those helpers that rich people have?”

Felix shrunk back, looking down at his lap nervously. Taking notice of his discomfort, Keitaro spoke up, placing a hand on Hiro’s shoulder, “I think Felix meant to say that this place needs more people to serve food, like waiters!”

Hiro cocked a brow, “Oh, that sounds fancy. But this is just a mess hall. It’s usually self-service here.”

Felix sighed, “Ohh…”

Keitaro smiled nervously, waving his hands in the air, “A-Anyway, why did you two enroll in Camp Buddy?”

Seto shrugged, “No special reason. My big brother signed me up. It’s probably part of his grand scheme to get the computer all to himself for the entire summer. He’s  _ pretty _ good at persuading my parents.”

Keitaro nodded, turning to Felix, “I see… how about you, Felix?”

Felix laced his fingers together, leaning on the table, “Well, my dad asked me to try going to a summer camp. He told me I need to be outdoors for at least one summer vacation. It’s all so new to me. I never really go outside of the estate.”

Hiro gave him a skeptical look, “You never left your house? Don’t you go to school?”

Felix shook his head, “I… I don’t… I have private teachers that come to teach me at home.”

Hiro’s eyes narrowed, “Seriously…?”

The small boy tilted his head, confusion etched into his brows, “Isn’t it normal to have them?”

Seto shook his head, letting out a defeated sigh whie Hiro’s jaw dropped in disbelief, “No, it isn’t! Are you some kinda rich boy?”

Before the conversation could continue, Seto yawned loudly, patting the table on either side of his tray, “Looks like Felix and I are done with our food! We’re gonna head back to our cabin!”

Felix gently grabbed his shirt, “Do we really have to go now, Seto? We just started talking…”

Giving him a sly smirk, Seto leaned down to whisper in Felix’s ear,  _ “Sssh! I wanna play on my PnesP…” _

Felix shook his head while Seto picked up their trays, standing from his seat. 

“We’ll talk to you guys later!” He waved, Keitaro waving back enthusiastically. 

“Right, thanks for chatting with us!” 

Felix gave him a nervous wave, still gripping Seto’s uniform as they walked away. 

Keitaro and Hiro resumed eating their lunches, talking about mediocre things for the rest of the afternoon. On the back-burner in his mind, Keitaro couldn’t help but feel giddy over his journal that sat next to him. After they were done, it was gonna be the first thing he did with the rest of their free day.

* * *

After eating their lunch and spending an hour or two chatting, Keitaro and Hiro retreated back to their cabin to relax for the rest of the evening. Changing into their pajamas, Hiro was lying back in his bed, Keitaro sitting on it's edge. 

Hiro let out a long yawn, arching his back as he stretched his body out. 

“Fwahhh! I’m so glad today is a rest day! Nothing beats chilling out after a yummy lunch!” 

Keitaro nodded in agreement. He then looked down at Hiro’s stomach, a thought occurred to him. 

“I still wonder sometimes… how you avoid gaining any weight from how much you eat, Hiro.” He poked Hiro’s stomach, the boy giggling at the touch. Hiro sat up, crossing his legs and swaying back and forth, “Beats me!”

Keitaro smiled, poking Hiro in the forehead and watching him fall back onto his back. When Hiro let out a series of giggles, Keitaro glanced over at his bed, seeing his journal laying across it. His eyes widened. He’d forgotten about his journal!

“Oh! I forgot! I think I should start writing in the journal Ms. Yuri gave me while we still have free time!”

Keitaro leapt off the bed, scooping it up into his hands. Hiro rolled onto his side, leaning on his hand, “Yeah, you were talking about it nonstop while we were eating.”

Keitaro blushed, tucking the book to his chest. 

From his bed, Yoichi stirred. Snorting and groaning, he slowly sat up, the blanket falling off his chest and rolling down to his lap. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, stretching his back and arms out. Propping his knee up, he leaned his arm against it to prop his head up. 

“Hey, newbloods. Whatchu up to?” 

Hiro pursed his lips, “Oh great. You’re awake.”

Keitaro held out his journal, shaking it excitedly, “Yoichi! Ms. Yuri gave me a journal!”

Yoichi cocked a brow, “She gave you a notebook? Wow… thrilling…” 

Hiro crossed his arms, glaring daggers at the boy, “Are you being sarcastic?” 

Yoichi rolled his eyes, setting his arms behind his head and leaning back against the bed frame, “I’m not much of a read-and-write guy. It’s boring and a waste of time.”

Before Hiro could say something, Keitaro hopped off his bed and skipped over to Yoichi’s, sitting down on the edge and causing the violette to blush. 

“Writing can be a lot of fun too, Yoichi! Think about all the stuff you can put in a journal! Ms. Yuri even told me that I can put all the pictures I’ve been taking!”

Yoichi huffed, “The only time I ever used a pen was the time I drew a mustache on Mr. Perfect while he was asleep,” He rolled over, “What would you write in there anyway? Don’t tell me you write stories like that crazy lady does.”

Keitaro hummed in thought, “Well… I plan to just write about the things I’ve experienced so far here in Camp Buddy.”

Yoichi sat up, his eyes wide. His gaze darted around, avoiding Keitaro’s sparkling eyes, “S-So… that means I’m in there too?”

He received a bubbly nod, “ _ Of course _ , Yoichi!”

A dark blush raced across Yoichi’s cheeks. He crossed his arms, turning his back to Keitaro and sticking his nose up, “Y-You better not stick in that  _ derpy _ picture of me!”

Hiro snorted, roaring with laughter, “HAHAHA! Good idea, Wolfboy! Keitaro, why don’t you put that on the first entry?”

He received a low growl in response.

The door to the cabin opened, and the three turned to see Natsumi walk in with Hunter in tow, both in their pajamas. Seeing them all sitting on the bed, Natsumi waved at them happily. 

“Hey there! Looks like you guys are keeping busy!”

Hiro waved back, jumping off his bed, “What’s up, guys? Look, Ms. Yuri gave Keitaro a journal.”

Natsumi rose a brow, his attention falling to the green book in Keitaro’s arms, “A journal? Hunter has something like that too!” 

Hunter shook his head back and forth, his blonde swishing, “I don’t have a journal, Natsumi. I think you were talking about the story books that I often read.”

The bluenette let out a ‘oh’ in understanding, apologizing to Hunter before turned back to Keitaro, “Journals are great, Keitaro! They’re an ideal medium you can use to vent out your emotions in a healthy way; whether you’re sad, angry, happy, frustrated, or all of the above!”

Hunter took a seat next to Keitaro, the brunette showing his journal off proudly. Hunter smiled, his hand reaching to gently tickle the cover, “That sounds useful… maybe I should get one too…” 

Natsumi smiled, plopping down next to Hunter, “What are you going to write first, Keitaro?”

Keitaro opened the journal, glancing across the clean, empty pages. His brows furrowed in thought, “Well, I’m entirely sure; could you guys help me out?”

Now all sitting on Yoichi’s bed, much to the large scout’s dismay, they all nodded eagerly. Keitaro smiled warmly, looking down at the pages silently. 

“Maybe I should write about…” 

Hiro raised his hand, “Ooo! How about all the fun times you spend with me! You’ll have all of your pages filled up in no time!” 

Yochi scoffed, “Nah, just write whatever pops into yer head. No need for any lame planning and such!”

Natsumi shook his head, “Come on, Yoichi! Planning is nice. How about all the great things about Camp Buddy? There are many, and I can help if you want!”

While Yoichi rolled his eyes, Hunter raised his hand, “Maybe about your new experiences since arriving? It might be interesting to see how-”

“ _ You.” _

The four went silent when Keitaro spoke up. Their gazes all fell on him, not actually hearing what he had said. 

“Could you repeat that, Keitaro? We were all talking so we couldn’t hear you,” Natsumi asked, lacing his fingers together. 

Keitaro smiled, “I wanna write about you guys!” 

Jaws dropped, eyes went wide, and cheeks became red. 

The four all stared at Keitaro in disbelief, unable to form any words at his proclamation. Keitaro shrunk back, tucking his journal to his chest. 

“Did… did I say something wrong?” 

The all shook their heads. 

“No, no, Keitaro! I-It’s just… you caught us off guard. You w-wanna write a-about… u… us?” Hunter exclaimed, waving his arms around. His blush darkened as he finished his sentence, and only spread to his ears when he received a positive nod from Keitaro. 

“Yeah! I may not have been here long, but you guys have made this place so much fun! I know I’d fill up a bunch of pages writing about you guys! If you’ll let me.”

Silence followed once more, the other trying to process the sentimental confession making their hearts pounding in their chests. 

Hiro twiddled his thumbs, “W-Well… I don’t mind if you write about me…”

Hunter nodded, “Me too, I-I d-don’t mind…”

Keitaro’s smile widened, and he turned to Natsumi and Yoichi for their permission. The bluenette blushed, rubbing his arm. 

“S-Sure, Keitaro, you can write about me…”

He turned to Yoichi. 

The fuchsia-eyed camper looked down at his lap, trying to hide the dark blush creeping across his cheeks, threatening to cover his ears and upper neck. 

He whispered, “D-Do what you w-want…”

Keitaro squealed with happiness, hugging the journal to his chest. 

The four watched him as he hopped up and down with glee, leaping off of Yoichi’s bed and racing over to his own. He pulled out his bag to fish out a few pencils and erasers, eager to start writing immediately.

Natsumi cleared his throat, “Now the Keitaro has decided. I think we should all give him some private time to work on it! We’re probably distracting you already, Keitaro.”

The brunette shook his head, “No, no! You guys really helped me figure out where and what to begin writing!”

Natsumi smiled, moving to his feet, “Alright then! I was about to patrol the campgrounds soon anyway! If you guys need me, just look for me outside.”

He gave them a bow and small wave before walking out of the cabin. Hunter stood from the bed as well, dusting off his pants, “I’ll leave you for now as well, Keitaro. I wanted to finish the book I started reading.”

Hunter walked over to his bed, sitting down and pulling out his book, giving Keitaro and the others one last smile before getting comfortable. 

Yoichi sighed, rubbing the back of his head, “I guess there’s nothing more to do here, huh? I’ma go outside and find something fun to do!” 

He leapt off the bed, throwing a wave behind him at Hiro and Keitaro before leaving the cabin, leaving Keitaro and Hiro. 

Keitaro sighed, “Aw, they all left…”

Hiro smiled, reaching out to pat his shoulder, “I think they all just wanted you to focus on your journal.”

Keitaro nodded, sitting down on his bed. He was about to offer the seat next to him for Hiro, but he spoke up before he could. 

“Speaking of which, I have to go too. I need to take a shower; I’m feeling kinda itchy from our hike.”

Keitaro nodded, scooting back to lean against his pillows snuggling into the plush objects, “Alrighty then! I should really start writing!”

Hiro nodded, moving towards the bathroom, “Okay then, Keitaro! Have fun!” 

Keitaro smiled, picking up his small, frog pencil. Opening the journal, he gazed down at the front page, inputting his name into the “Your Name” box before flipping over to the first, blank page. He reached down to the floor and reached into his bag, pulling out his binder of photos. Setting it down next to him, he put the end of the pencil on his lip. 

“Hmmm… let’s see... okay... how do I start this? I guess something like…”

_ Journal Entry No. 1: July 4th (18:45) _

_ “My name is Keitaro Nagame! I’m nineteen years old, my birthday is April 8th, and frogs are my favorite animal! Though, that might be a super cheesy way to start this out. Anyway, this is my journal for all of the great memories I’ll be making here in Camp Buddy! _

_ Four days ago, me and my best friend Hiro, whom I’ve known since kindergarten, arrived at Camp Buddy for the summer! It was so cool to see everything from the cabins to the grounds and the large lake in the back. We were greeted so nicely by an official scoutmaster, Yoshinori! He made us feel really welcome, and he seems to love his job a lot. He breaks out into speeches a lot, it’s kinda funny! :P _

_ We met a lot of new people as well! Natsumi Hamasaki; a super responsible scout who gave Hiro and I a tour of the camp! He’s actually super handsome. He has these deep blue eyes that shimmer in the sunlight! Yoichi Yukimura; a loud, but super cool guy who loves to play! He can smell people from over a smile away, and he’s super muscular. I wonder if he works out, I’ve caught myself staring at his thighs a few times too many. And Hunter Springfield, a shy and quiet boy who loves to read! He’s actually from England! He has soft blonde hair and a lovely, velvety voice and sweet smile. He’s so tiny too, I feel nervous around him, like I could snap him if I’m too rough with him. Did that sound weird? I can tell it’s going to be a super fun summer with them as my cabinmates!  _

_ After an awesome welcome party, we talked about the Buddy Law, the camp’s guidelines and soon after, were told to pack up for a camping trip in the woods! I was SO excited! I also got to meet the camp counselor, Ms. Yuri; a nice, funny lady who REALLY seemed to like me and Hiro. She started talking about him and I being a couple. I will admit here if not aloud that Hiro is rather cute. He has a very bubbly and loving personality, like an adorable housewife! Oh man… that was weird DX. We also met Sir Aiden, the chef and all around helper of the camp! _

_ It wasn’t all perfect though. A fiery-haired guy named Taiga seemed to dislike me along with his friends, a sassy boy named Eduard and a smart-talking scout named Lee. Something about that Taiga almost… called to me. Whenever he speaks to me, his eyes are filled with pain. Something happened to him before, and he’s taking it out on me for reasons unknown. I won’t let it get me down though! And if I must say, Taiga, despite being a bit mean, he’s very attractive. I feel my heart beat a bit faster whenever those crimson eyes bore into me.  _

_ Our camping trip may have been cut short by this scary man named Goro, and I think something might be happening behind the scenes, but I'm not going to let that stop me from making the greatest memories! I can't wait to see what happens next! _

_ Yours truly,  _

_ Keitaro  _

* * *

Keitaro let out a deep sigh, gently closing the book. Cracking his knuckles, he leaned back against his pillows. 

“Whew! All done for today! What time is it…” He mused, turning to look over his shoulder. He pulled back the curtain on one of the windows and was shocked to see the night sky. 

“Eh!? It’s evening already?! I completely lost track of time!” He swung his legs over the edge of the bed, placing his journal down next to him. A creak sounded off behind him and he turned to see Hiro walk in. The amber-eyed boy noticed him and smiled, skipping over to him, “Hey, Keitaro! Are you all done?”

He nodded. Hiro sighed, placing his hands on his hips, “Sorry about disappearing. I kinda went outside to get some snacks since I was getting a bit bored waiting for you.”

Keitaro frowned, looking down shamefully, “O-Oh… I’m sorry, Hiro…”

Hiro chuckled, shaking his head, “That’s okay, Keitaro. At least you’re out of it now!”

Keitaro sighed in relief. He heard the door open behind Hiro, looking over his shoulder to see Natsumi walk in, his sash of badges across his chest, “Were you able to finish writing, Keitaro? You really took your time there.”

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah. Oh! What are you wearing, Natsumi?” He noticed the sash across his chest, pointing at it curiously. 

Natsumi grabbed it and held it up, smiling proudly, “Oh, this? It’s my badge sash! I was showing it to Hiro a while ago.”

Hiro rose a brow, “You’ve only noticed it just now, Keitaro? He wears it the whole time we’re in our uniforms!”

Keitaro chuckled nervously.

Hiro sighed, reaching out and patting Keitaro’s head, “By the way, Keitaro! You won’t believe how many badges he has! He has like more than a hundred!”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped and Natsumi puffed his chest out proudly, “One hundred and forty-five to be precise! I’m five badges away from completing the collection book!”

Keitaro smiled, looking over the sash with awe, “Wow! You must’ve worked so hard to earn them all!”

Natsumi smiled, a gentle blush dusting his cheeks, “Yes, I did! I’ve been working hard to collect these ever since I joined Camp Buddy!”

Looking at the sash once more, Keitaro stepped a little closer, looking at the badges carefully, “How did you get these badges?”

“Most of the time during our activities, the scoutmasters observe everything we do! If we do good deeds or perform certain tasks, they reward our achievements with these badges! That’s why I really love collecting these! They’re proof of my achievements here in Camp Buddy!” He explained, Keitaro’s eyes sparkling. 

“That’s really cool, Natsumi!” He exclaimed, the blush on Natsumi’s face growing darker, “You think so, Keitaro?” 

He nodded, “Yeah! Scoutmaster Yoshi must be so proud of you!”

Hiro sighed, a smirk crawling onto his face, “No wonder he always leaves you in charge.”

Natsumi smiled again, looking down at his sash, “To be honest, collecting these badges really is just optional. But I do remember Scoutmaster Yoshi encouraging everyone to collect badges for our moral development. Sadly, no one takes badge collection too seriously around here.”

“Are you the only one who has badges in this camp?” Hiro asked, wondering if his statement meant no one else had badges.

Natsumi shook his head, “Oh no, of course not! I believe Hunter and the other campers have some badges too! If I remember correctly, Hunter has already acquired two of his own badges. I think they were the ‘Bookworm Badge’ and ‘Well-Behaved Badge’.”

Keitaro giggled, “That does sound like Hunter.” 

Hiro sat down on his bed, “Then that means you have those badges too, Natsumi?”

The bluenette nodded, “Yes! You don’t have to do the specific task for the badge all the time! As long as you meet the required criteria, they’ll award you with the badge.”

Keitaro bounced on his feet, the thought of collecting badges exciting him, “I think I’ll collect badges too! It sounds fun!”

From across the room, a loud scoff sounded. The three turned to see Yoichi lying on his bed, his arms behind his head. 

“What’s so good about it? It’s just a piece of worthless cloth stitched to our shirts!” He snapped, pursing his lips. 

Hiro shook his head, “What’s your problem now, Wolfboy?”

Yoichi rolled onto his side, “I’m just telling the truth. Those weird scoutmasters won’t give us any rewards we can actually use.”

Natsumi sighed, shaking his head, “Don’t be so negative, Yoichi! Think of it as a trophy you earned with your hard work! Isn’t it fulfilling to see all your achievements?”

Yoichi scoffed again, “Tch! It’s a waste of time, if you ask me.”

Natsumi looked at the violette in disappointment, “But you know how tight the budget in this camp is… Scoutmaster Yoshi made these badges himself! It’s really nice of him to do that, you know!”

Yoichi closed his eyes, “Hmph. I don’t care. Don’t ever bother collecting those badges, Keitaro. It’s just a pathetic way of making us feel better!”

Before Keitaro could respond, Natsumi huffed with irritation, “Yoichi! You should at  _ least _ be grateful that Scoutmaster Yoshi is doing his best to give us awards for the things we put effort into!”

Hiro nodded with agreement, “Aren’t you just making excuses for your laziness, Wolfboy?”

The large scout sat with, leaning on his knee and scowling at him, “Shut up, Torch-head! He should give you the ‘most annoying’ badge!”

Keitaro looked between the three, feeling nervous as the tension began to rise. 

_ Oh no, they’re arguing again… I need to say something. They shouldn’t be pressuring Yoichi to do something he doesn’t want to, but Yoichi shouldn’t be putting down others… how do I… maybe… _

“I’m sure Yoichi is doing his best to be a good scout as well! Maybe the scoutmasters are having a hard time seeing that. But I know Yoichi can be a good guy too!”

Natsumi and Hiro both reeled back, embarrassed at Keitaro’s endearing words, but clear undertone; to stop pressuring Yoichi. 

Yoichi, on the other hand, blushed darkly, his ears growing hot in a second. He opened his mouth to make a comeback, but only managed to make a few sounds before forming a coherent sentence. 

“What the… I… wha… w-what are you saying?! I-I don’t need you to pity me! S-Stupid!”

Yoichi covered his face, jumping off his bed and stomping out of the room, trying to hide his blush from the others. 

Rolling his eyes, Hiro leaned back against the bed frame, “Ugh! He always barges in on our conversations then storms off right after!” 

Natsumi walked over and patted Hiro’s shoulder, reassuring the scout, “You don’t need to take Yoichi’s words so seriously, Hiro.” 

Wanting to prevent any further conflict, Keitaro spoke up, “I think Yoichi actually enjoys our company… he may just have a hard time expressing it properly.” 

The three looked at where Yoichi disappeared to, noticing that he had walked into the bathroom. Had he intended to leave the actual cabin? Sighing, Natsumi rubbed Keitaro’s back, giving it a few pats. Feeling a little guilty about how he pressured Yoichi, he decided to pursue the scout and apologize.

“Don’t worry about it, Keitaro, I’ll go talk to him.”

He walked out of the room and into the locker room, searching for the violet-haired scout. Once he was gone, Keitaro sighed heavily, feeling a little disappointment. He wanted everyone to get along, but it seemed that whenever Hiro and Yoichi interacted, they always began arguing. He flopped onto his bed, stretching his arms out. 

“I’d thought you and Yoichi were getting along now…”

Hiro noticed his disappointment, looking down at the floor. He rubbed the back of his neck, moving his head from side to side, “I don’t know. He just really…  _ grinds _ my gears sometimes.”

Keitaro pouted. 

“But I don’t hate him or anything! He’s just annoying.” Hiro waved his hands in a panic at the sight of Keitaro's unhappiness. The brunette sighed in return, sitting up in his bed, “Like I said, maybe Yoichi just has trouble expressing himself properly…”

Hiro nodded, “Well… I do too… in a way…”

Keitaro straightened out. What? When did Hiro have this issue? He slowly began to climb off the bed, concern written all over his face, “Wh-What-”

“A-Ah! Don’t mind that! I need to use the bathroom! Bye!”

Hiro sputtered suddenly and rushed out of the room, disappearing into the bathroom and leaving Keitaro standing in the middle of the room by himself. His heart pounded with anxiety, and he clutched his shirt tightly in his fist. 

“That was weird… is he hiding something from me?” He asked himself. He was about to pursue Hiro, wanting to get an answer out of the boy before-

“Hello.”

Keitaro yelped, spinning around to see Hunter standing a few feet from him. He clutched his chest to regulate his breathing, “Whoa! You surprised me, Hunter!” 

The small blonde winced, feeling guilty over constantly frightening his friends, “I-I’m sorry Keitaro… I was just listening to your conversation earlier.”

Keitaro rose a brow, “Oh, you were? W-Wait… when did you get here anyway?”

Hunter twiddled his thumbs, “I was here the whole time… like always… b-but anyway, I wanted to talk to you… I mean, if you’re not too busy…”

Keitaro’s whole demeanor lit up. Whenever he spoke to Hunter, their conversation was always cut short by someone either interrupting him, or the both of them being busy. He’d been wanting to have a chance to just talk to him, and that moment had finally arrived.

“Just in time! I’ve been wanting to talk with you as well!”

Hunter’s face darkened with a heavy blush, “R-Really?”

He nodded, “Yep! We really haven’t had the chance to talk much lately! I’m kind of surprised that you were the one who approached me!” 

Looking down at his feet, Hunter smiled softly, rubbing his cheek with embarrassment, “I… find it really comforting to talk with you, actually. It’s just the sometimes, I really do just have a hard time conveying what I want to say into words… whenever I talk… things just start to get awkward…”

Before he could go on, Keitaro reached out and took his hand, giving it a few rubs for reassurance, “There’s nothing to worry about! I’m your friend! You can just be yourself with me! To be honest, I never thought that you were awkward, Hunter!” 

The small scout smiled, “I actually wanted to join the conversation about badges earlier… but I was too caught up in thinking about how I should join in… and then everyone just started shouting at each other…”

Keitaro felt a small sting of guilt in his chest, realizing that the fight between Hiro nad Yoichi put him off a bit. He patted Hunter’s hand again, giving him a reassuring smile. 

“How about you try to take a deep breath and relax whenever you’re feeling anxious?” He suggested. 

Hunter nodded, taking a deep breath in. 

“There you go!”

And exhaling slowly. 

Smiling brightly, Keitaro let go of Hunter’s hand, clasping his own hands behind his back, “So? What did you want to talk about, Hunter?”

Taking another deep breath, the blonde reached back into his pocket, fishing for something. 

“The thing is… I wanted to show you something, and I was hoping you would tell me what you thought of it.”

Keitaro nodded, “Sure thing! What is it?”

Hunter blushed, pulling out what looked like a piece of paper. 

“Well, I’ve been drawi-”

_ “HAHAHAHAHA! CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, SLOWPOKE!” _

Yoichi suddenly tore across the cabin, sailing right in-between Hunter and Keitaro, causing the two to jump back in freight. He jumped up onto the top bunk of one of the beds, cackling loudly and waving something around. Before Keitaro could identify it, Natsumi came running out of the bathroom, his face red with embarrassment. 

“Y-Yoichi! G-Give that back!”

Natsumi stood by the bed, staring up at Yoichi, who smirked in return, “Okay! Here you go~” 

He held down whatever he was holding just slightly, Natsumi sighing in relief, “Thank yo-”

“SIKE!”

Yoichi pulled it back and leapt from the bunk, grabbing onto another bed and moving up to it. Keitaro’s jaw dropped at Yoichi’s ability, but when he howled with laughter again, Keitaro turned to Natsumi. 

“N-Natsumi, what’s going on?!”

The tall scout looked down, a blush covering his face, “Oh, i-it’s really embarrassing, Keitaro… I-I was trying to hold him back… but when I dragged him… he just ran into the bathroom then started scattering all the laundry…”

Keitaro rose a brow, “Y-You’re not making any sense, Natsumi…”

Hunter pointed at Yoichi, “Umm… Yoichi is holding Natsumi’s underwear.”

Said scout sniggered, “What’s wrong, Natsumi? Out of breath already?” 

He roared with laughter again, waving the cloth around like a flag. 

“Hey guys, look at his undies! Isn’t this something preschoolers would wear? It even has little stars on it! HAHAHAHA!”

Natsumi huffed, reaching up to try and swipe the clothing from him, “WOW!  _ Real mature _ , Yoichi! Give it back! Come on!!”

While Natsumi and Yoichi danced around the bed, Keitaro heard footsteps behind him. He blushed darkly to see Hiro stomping out of the bathroom, completely undressed and in nothing but his underwear. 

“WHO TOOK MY CLOTHES?!” 

Yoichi snorted, falling back onto his side, clutching his stomach as he laughed, “GAHAHAHA! Not MY fault you left it scattered with the other laundry! And besides, why do you have to strip just to take a dump?”

Hiro growled, sailing across the room to the bed, “I knew it was you, Wolfboy!”

Yoichi smirked, “Here then…  _ YOU CAN HAVE THIS INSTEAD!” _

Yoichi swung the underwear in his hand like a lasso and launched it right at Hiro. 

Natsumi gasped in horror as a pair of his underwear was thrown right at Hiro’s face, the boy racing over and pulling it off, “YOICHI!!! Oh my god; I’m so so sorry, Hiro!”

When removed, Hiro’s face was flushed red with what could’ve been embarrassment or anger. 

“WHY YOU!!! YOU’RE DEAD MEAT!!!”

Hiro threw himself up into the bunk, trying to strangle the large scout while the latter only laughed. Hunter moved up and stood underneath them, waving his arms around frantically, “Everyone, l-let’s keep it down! If the scoutmasters hear us, we’ll be in big trouble!”

Hiro responded by yanking one of the pillows and chucking it at Yoichi, who in turn leapt off the bed and onto the floor, ducking out of the flying cushions. 

“Hiro! Don’t throw the pillow around! I just cleaned those-”

“WOLFBOY STARTED IT! Keitaro! Tell Wolfboy here to give me back my clothes-”

“ **_YOICHI_ ** !”

Silence. They all turned to see Keitaro in the middle of the room, red in the face from shouting. 

He turned to Yoichi. 

“Yoichi, please return Hiro’s clothes to him.”

Yoichi shrunk down, amazed and terrified at Keitaro’s stern words. He looked down at the floor and pointed at the bathroom. 

“Y-Your clothes are behind the bathroom door, Torch-head. You’re so lame; you didn’t even see them!”

Hiro huffed, “Well, you shouldn’t have taken them in the first place!”

Natsumi looked at Keitaro in awe, “Wow, Keitaro! You’re a natural at stopping fights!”

Keitaro winced, “I-I’m sorry for yelling! I-I just p-panicked!”

Natsumi only laughed, “I have to admit… all of this was… hilarious… hahaha!”

Hunter nodded in agreement, “Y-Yeah… hahaha!”

A few moments of silence passed. 

And they all erupted with laughter. 

Yoichi fell onto the floor and Hiro slung himself over the edge of the bed. Hunter and Natsumi leaned on each for support and Keitaro dropped onto his rear, tears leaking from his eyes as he laughed. 

_ Man, there’s never a dull moment with these guys around. They’re all so amusing in their own ways! But I feel like I’m forgetting something important… something someone wanted to show me… at any rate, being able to spend time with everyone like this is everything I hope for! _

Keitaro opened his eyes to look at his cabin-mates, still stricken with laughter. A large smile graced his cheeks. 

_ What an amazing night! _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! Day 4 Done!
> 
> And at a reasonable time frame too!
> 
> So I have indeed noticed how long these chapters get as I write them. I hadn't realized that doing one day for a chapter would make them so lengthy. Heck, this chapter is 12000 words and 37 pages long if that says anything. The rest of the days, until Day 8 will be like this. Day 8 is definitely gonna be a two-parter, since I've got big plans for it! 
> 
> The chapters after Day 8 will be long, but I'm sure if they'll get to this length. So just a heads up that the chapters in this story are gonna lengthy! 
> 
> So, Day 4 is fun since we meet Goroooo. We'll see him more in day 5, which I'm SUPER excited to write. Let's just say I have a fun way to include the plots of the other routes into Keitaro's Nature Day scene. 
> 
> And I loved writing the beginning of this chapter where Keitaro has just been consumed by his cabin-mates. 
> 
> More Taiga in the next chapter, I'm so hyped!
> 
> And yes, the journal will be present in this story, but will only be seen on the days they're present in-game. I'm not gonna do it each chapter, I'm not thaaat crazy~ 
> 
> Welp, that'll be all for now. I hope you all enjoyed! For updates on Sleepsong and other CB shenanigans, check out my Twitter: @TiraminaFW. Now, if you'll excuse me, Imma go take care of the any infestation in my house -_-' 
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories! 
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	6. Day 5: What Nature Reveals

“Good morning everyone! I assume everyone slept well!”

The happy, energetic, morning proclamation was met with various groans and sighs of anger and frustration. 

“Nope. Torch-head was snoring sooooo loud; I could hear it in my sleep.” Yoichi sat up and threw his blanket off, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. 

Hiro sighed, rubbing the grogginess from his eyes, “Not today, Wolfboy. I don’t want you ruining my morning.” 

The whole cabin went silent, restless from a rather sleepless night. Before anyone could say anymore, a knock rapped against the door. They all turned to see Yuri walk in, a bright smile on her face. 

“Oh! Seems like all of you are already awake in here!”

Keitaro rubbed his eyes, looking up through blurry eyes at Yuri. He gave her a sluggish wave, “Good morning, Ms. Yuri…”

“Scoutmaster Yoshinori will not be here today, so I will be taking charge in his place!” She explained, flicking the light switch to illuminate the cabin. Most of them rolled over to hide from the light, while Natsumi stood from his bed and approached Yuri. 

“May I ask why he’s absent today, Ms. Yuri?”

She nodded, “He’s just handling very important matters regarding our camp as of now, but he will be back by tomorrow! Anyway, he asked me to prepare some activities for you all.”

She clapped her hands together, “I want you all to get changed into your uniforms within the next thirty minutes! Once everyone’s ready, we’ll have an assembly on the campgrounds. Is that clear?”

Natsumi gave her a salute, “Affirmative, Ms. Yuri!” 

She nodded positively, “I want to see your cute faces neat and clean before we begin our activity, alright?”

She patted Natsumi on the head before spinning on her heel, marching out to go and awaken the other cabins. 

After the door closed, Natsumi turned around and clapped his hands together, “You all heard Ms. Yuri! We have thirty minutes before the activity starts!”

He jumped around the cabin and pulled the blankets off of everyone, many curling up into fetal position to try and escape the cold. Yoichi on the other hand, let out what sounded like a pterodactyl screech in protest, rolling off his bed. 

“Come on guys, let's go! We don’t wanna be late!” Natsumi fussed, walking around Yoichi’s bed to pull him off the ground. 

Keitaro slowly stood up, walking over to Hiro’s bed to pull him up, “Come on Hiro… let’s go…”

Hiro let out a small whine, shuffling behind Keitaro as the brunette went and lifted Hunter from his head, leading the two to the bathroom. 

He put the two in front of their lockers, moving to his own to get into his uniform. As he pulled out his shirts and shorts and began disrobing, his mind began to wonder about Yoshi’s absence. 

_It’s a bit strange that Ms. Yuri would just replace Scoutmaster Yoshi like that. I wonder if it has something to do with what I overheard yesterday…?_

He frowned. 

_Could what Taiga had said really be true?_

As Keitaro buttoned his shirt, his mind went back to how Taiga talked about the camp when they were alone in the woods. About this camp and how it worked, business and business alone. The disrespect and negativity that surrounded it.

_I hope not…_

As he fixed on his tie, he heard Natsumi and Yoichi come into the bathroom. Natsumi was dragging Yoichi by his wrist, finally getting the large scout up and out of his bed. 

Keitaro clipped on the star badge and turned to Hiro, who was groggily buttoning his shirt. 

“Natsumi. Do you know what activity we could be having today, since Scoutmaster Yoshi is gone and everything?” Keitaro asked, closing up his locker. 

The bluenette shook his head, pulling his sleeping shirt over his head, “Sorry, Keitaro. I’m not sure. I mean, I knew today would have a certain activity, but with Scoutmaster Yoshi gone, we may be doing something else.”

Keitaro rose a brow, sitting down on the bench to tie his shoes, “What kind of activity?” 

Natsumi smiled, holding a finger up and waggling it, “You’ll see, Keitaro!” 

Yoichi rolled his eyes, and Hiro and Hunter exchanged looks of confusion. What did he mean by that? Deciding to wait until the assembly, the five all finished getting ready and headed out of the cabin, gathering into the courtyard. 

They saw the scouts from the other cabins gathering around them, all whispering about Yoshi’s unexpected absence. 

They waited in silence for a few minutes, still trying to wake themselves up before their day started. When Yuri skipped up to them, she quickly scanned the small crowd. 

“Is everybody here? Okay, good!”

She stopped in front of them, clapping her hands together, “Today is a very special day! Does anyone know why that is?” 

Silence was the answer. 

Many of the scouts looked at their feet, unable to answer her question. After a few long, awkward moments, the pregnant pause hanging heavily, Natsumi raised his hand. 

“Today is ‘Nature Day’, Scoutmaster Yuri!”

Yuri smiled, mentally sighing in relief at the answer. 

“That’s correct!” She chirped, clapping her hands again. 

Hiro raised a brow in confusion, “What the heck is ‘Nature Day’?”

She turned to the camper and laced her fingers together, about to explain the contents of their activity before-

“Probably just some random event she made up as an excuse for an activity…” Yoichi scoffed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

Natsumi frowned, shaking his head, “Of course not, Yoichi! We celebrated it last summer too, remember?” 

Hunter nodded as well, “I think I’ve read about it in some articles before… Camp Buddy was known for raising a lot of awareness for the preservation of nature.”

Yuri nodded, patting Hunter on the head, “That’s right! To show our support for ‘Nature Day’, we will be dedicating the next twenty-four hours to environmental-friendly activities! Ranging from maintaining the cleanliness of our surroundings to repopulating our forests! Now, isn’t that exciting?!”

Keitaro smiled brightly, clapping his hands together happily. He loved helping nature! He never really saw the appeal of keeping his eyes glued to a phone; he would rather be enjoying the fresh air outside. This activity was perfect for him!

Yoichi, on the other hand, growled.

“What? No way, I’m not doing this! This is so lame! Catch you all later! I’ma go back to the cabin to get some more sleep!”

He threw up a peace sign and spun on his heel, beginning his march. 

But Yuri held up a hand, waggling her finger, “Ah ah ah, Mr. Yukimura!”

He turned to look over his shoulder. 

“I have locked all the cabin doors to make sure everyone equally contributes to this activity.”

Yoichi skidded to a stop, his head dropping in disappointment. He slowly walked back to the group, crossing his arms angrily. Yuri only chuckled in response, “There are lots of things to do outdoors! Just use your imagination, Mr. Yukimura.”

Hiro nodded, setting his hands on his hips, “Hey, this actually sounds fun! We should go plant some seeds! I’ve done a bit of gardening before!”

Natsumi straightened his back and gave her a salute, “I’ll be in charge of cleaning duty, Ms. Yuri! I’ve been meaning to do a full cleanup of the campgrounds!”

Yuri smiled, “Now that’s what I want to hear, Natsumi, Hiro! I’m glad you’re both happy to take part in this activity! Everything related to our love for nature is encouraged in this activity!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Ugh, this just _sounds_ boring. I’ll just go and hug some trees or whatever…”

Yoichi turned and walked into the forest, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Yuri sighed, turning to Keitaro and grinning. 

“How about you, Keitaro? Have you though of any activities that may suit your skills or interests?” 

Keitaro looked down at his feet, racking his brain. He scratched his cheek in thought, “Ummm… I want to… hmmm…”

A few moments of silence. An idea popped into his head. 

“OH! Ms. Yuri! Has anyone documented the activities before? Like a scrapbook of Nature Day?” He asked, the scoutmaster’s eyes widening. She looked up in thought before shaking her head. 

“I don’t think we’ve done anything like before. I know we had some photos taken before for the paper a few years back, but that was it. What are you suggesting?” 

Keitaro lifted his camera and pointed at it, “Maybe I can take photos of everyone doing their activity! And after, we can compile them into a big poster or scrapbook and put it on display, so everyone can see the effort we put into helping nature!” 

Yuri gasped, her hands coming to her cheeks, “Oh my goodness, that’s a brilliant idea, Mr. Nagame! I fully approve! That’s one of the more creative ideas we’ve had in a while, I’m impressed!”

Keitaro blushed, rubbing the back of his head. 

“The rest of you are free to begin the activity now!”

Yuri gave her hands one last clap, and the crowd dispersed. Keitaro lifted his camera, wiping off the lens. 

“OH! Ms. Yuri!” He cried, the scoutmaster turning around. 

“I know you locked the doors already, but can I go into my cabin and get my photo binder? I wanna have a safe place to store the photos.”

Yuri nodded, reaching into her pocket for her keys. 

“Not a problem, Mr. Nagame! Follow me!”

* * *

Keitaro fixed his bag onto his side, making sure he had everything he needed. Spare batteries, extra film, and three small binders for his pictures. After double checking his supplies, he smiled. 

Ready to go!

Keitaro took in a deep breath, stretching his arms up and out. He lifted his camera and scanned the area for his first subject. 

He saw all the scouts filing into small groups or walking off individually, each of them going to work on their projects for the activity. Most of them started to tend to the plants, the easier of the tasks they were provided. 

Keitaro hummed, rubbing his chin in thought. He looked towards the courtyard, and found his first subject. 

Natsumi, broom in hand, was sweeping the courtyard dutifully, eyes scanning the ground for any dirt or garbage. A bright smile crawled onto his face, and he broke into a trot towards the tall scout. 

“Natsumi!” 

The bluenette looked up, grinning at the sight of Keitaro. 

“Hello, Keitaro! Here for your activity?” He asked, receiving a nod from the brunette. 

“Yep! You know what is?” 

Natsumi nodded, “I heard you explain it to Ms. Yuri earlier. I assume you wanna take pictures of me while I clean?” 

Keitaro nodded, “Yes! If that’s alright with you.”

Natsumi nodded, “No problem! I’ll get started then!”

Keitaro dropped to one knee as Natsumi began to sweep the courtyard. Aiming his camera, Keitaro made sure to catch the best lighting as Natsumi dutifully swept. He looked so focused and concentrated. Keitaro wanted to strike up a conversation, but with Natsumi’s eyes focused solely on the ground, he decided to bite his tongue for now. 

He took a few pictures.

He held up his other hand and caught the pictures that printed, fanning them off to the side. He pulled out his binder and opened it, sliding three pictures into a page. A gentle blush dusted his cheeks when he looked at them. The angles and lighting made Natsumi look handsome in each photo. 

He turned back and took a few more. 

He began to notice Natsumi looking more and more… frustrated. He’d sweep over spots he’d already done, and if the smallest area was left untouched, he’d fix it with this look on his face, like he was disappointed. 

After a minute or two, Keitaro noticed that he was sweeping the same places over and over again. 

“Ummm… Natsumi? I don’t mean to pry, but the courtyard looks pretty clean from here…” He voiced, looking at one of his photos, showing the now spotless ground.

Natsumi looked down at the ground, “I-Is it…?”

He gasped, “Ah! There are plenty of fallen leaves over there!”

He rushed over and swept them up, “There we go! Good as new! Ah! Somebody littered on the path-walk!”

He raced over to pick up the trash and sweep the spot.

“There we go! NOW it’s good as new! Hmm? Where did all that dirt come from? I thought I cleaned that spot already?” 

He swept it again. 

“AH! I missed a spot over there!”

Keitaro looked on with concern.

“Ummm… Natsumi, I think everything’s clean enough.” 

He stood from his spot, walking to observe the courtyard. Spotless. Natsumi looked up, scanning the area as if unsure. 

“Oh, hmmm…” He smiled, “I guess you’re right! Time to segregate all this garbage!”

_What?_

Keitaro hadn’t noticed the piles of garbage Natsumi had made off to the side near the cabin. Natsumi put away his broom and skipped over to it, sitting down in the grass to sort through it. 

Keitaro walked over to him, sitting adjacent from him, camera at the ready. He took a few pictures as Natsumi began to sort. 

“So plastic materials go here… dried leaves over there… I shouldn’t put paper and cans together in one bag…”

As Natsumi sorted the garbage, Keitaro looked up from his camera, raising a brow, “Natsumi? Wouldn’t it be easier to separate it by biodegradation category?”

Natsumi looked up with concern, “Oh? But wouldn’t the other materials be useful for recycling?” 

Keitaro hummed, nodding in understanding. A smile crawled onto his face as he took a few more pictures. 

_It seems that Natsumi is used to organizing things on a more specific level._

After a few minutes, Natsumi crossed his arms. “There! Everything looks perfect! Did you get enough pictures, Keitaro?” 

The green-eyed boy nodded, showing the eight pictures he took, “Yep! Thank you for letting me take them, Natsumi!”

“No problem!”

Keitaro hummed, filing the pictures away, “Ummm… is it okay if I ask you something?”

“What is it, Keitaro?”

As he slipped the last photo into the binder, he took a deep breath, “I just noticed that you usually try to make things as perfect as possible.”

Natsumi nodded proudly, “Ah! It’s expected of me to perform my tasks with minimal mistakes! I can’t let Scoutmaster Yoshi down; especially that he always calls me the ‘best’ in front of everyone. I still can’t forget how I failed the activity the other day.”

The camping trip. That’s right. Yoshi had expressed his surprise at their team getting lost and being the last to show up. Keitaro hadn’t noticed that Yoshi had always turned to Natsumi for assistance. 

“But that wasn’t your fault!”

Natsumi shook his head, “The scoutmasters are expecting great things from me. I have to do my best at all times and set a perfect example for the other scouts to follow!” 

Keitaro furrowed his brows, “Aren’t you stressed with all that pressure put on you?” 

Natsumi smiled and shook his head, “Oh, don’t worry about me! I can handle it! It’s the least I can do for the recognition the scoutmasters have given me! It’s very rewarding to get noticed for the good things that I do! And what’s more I get to be useful to everyone! That’s a huge fulfillment on my part!”

Keitaro put his camera down, “But you don’t have to be so strict on yourself! You need to take care of yourself too…”

Natsumi smiled fondly, “Awww… that’s really nice of you, Keitaro! I think that’s what makes you really adorable!”

His heart began to hammer in his chest, “A-Adorable…?”

A dark blush illuminated his cheeks at the heartfelt compliment, Natsumi smiling brightly at him.

“I appreciate your concern for me, Keitaro. I promise you that I won’t overwork myself!”

Keitaro smiled, looking down at his camera to try and hide the growing blush on his face. 

The two sat in a comfortable silence. Then Keitaro remembered his activity. 

“OH goodness! I forgot about my activity! I need to go gather more pictures for my activity!” 

He scrambled to his feet, gathering his photos and supplies into his bag. Natsumi nodded, climbing to his feet. 

“I hope I could help you with your activity, Keitaro!” He chirped, clapping his hands together. Keitaro nodded, “You did! Thank you for letting me take some pictures!”

Keitaro slung his bag over his shoulder, giving Natsumi a small bow in thanks. As he walked away, his mind began to wander. 

_It really bothered me how pressured Natsumi was into looking perfect in everybody’s eyes. I’m worried that the time will come where he can’t handle all the expectations set on him. But at least I’ve got the change to spend time with him and know him better. He even called me adorable…_

His face turned a gentle pink again. 

Shaking his head, Keitaro moved through the camp silently, trying to find his next muse for his activity. 

He knew Hiro was planting a garden somewhere. Maybe he could take pictures of him!

Keitaro knew that Hiro was planting his garden near the scoutmaster’s cabin. He skipped through the campgrounds and moved around the building, looking for Hiro. 

“Hmmm… where is he?”

“KEITARO!”

He spun around at the sound of his name, looking through the bushes. 

He saw Hiro waving his hand frantically, a bright smile on his face. Keitaro returned it, skipping over to his friend. 

“Hey, Hiro! How’s the garden coming along?” He asked, sitting down next to him. 

Hiro smiled, pointing at the small lumps in the ground where he had planted the produce. 

“This row is melons, this one is blueberries, this has tomatoes, and these ones are sunflowers! I just finished planting all of them!”

Keitaro smiled, lifting his camera and taking a picture of the rows of dirt. 

“Wow! That’s impressive! Are you planting anything else?” He asked, receiving a nod from Hiro. He held out a small pot with a plant in it. 

“This one is an oak tree! It’s still super little right now, but I figured it would be nice to plant behind the cabin, because once it grows up, it can be like a background for the cabin!” He explained, Keitaro’s jaw dropping. 

“That’s super cool, Hiro!”

The amber-eyed boy blushed, “Hehe, thanks Keitaro!”

He smiled, “Well don’t let me stop you! I’ll take some pictures of you planting that, is that alright?”

Hiro nodded enthusiastically, “Sure, Keitaro! I don’t mind at all!”

Keitaro smiled happily, moving back a bit so that he could capture all of Hiro in his photos. As he snapped a few pictures, Hiro had dug a hole and settled the tiny tree into it, patting the dirt around it. 

Hiro let out a deep sigh, “Isn’t this fun, Keitaro?”

He looked up from his camera. 

“You and I in the garden, just like the good ol’ days.”

Keitaro sat in thought for a few moments before smiling as a few memories came to mind, “Oh yeah! We used to do this before!” 

Hiro smiled, “I remember you used to pass by my place after school to give me and my mom a helping hand. She was always so happy whenever you dropped by!”

Keitaro nodded, remembering stopping by Hiro’s house. His mom would always welcome him with a warm smile and freshly baked sweets. Keitaro loved Ms. Akiba to death. She had done so much for him and his sister, especially in his third grade year, when everything in his life had gone wrong. She was there for him and his sister, welcoming them with open arms until they were back on their feet. 

He’d never be able to repay her for what she’d done for them.

Keitaro smiled warmly, “I’ve always loved coming over to your place. Your mom is so sweet and kind! She always served us snacks then! Not to mention that she always gives me flowers from her garden.” He remembered many times when she would pick flowers for him. Sometimes she’d even make him flower crowns!

“She always liked you, you know. You were the only one that she let me play with!” Hiro sighed, giving Keitaro a small smile. 

Keitaro’s face fell slightly. He knew that well. 

“Speaking of your mom, how is she doing?”

Hiro sighed, “She’s sick as always. But don’t worry! She manages her health very well.”

Keitaro looked down at his feet, “I can’t help but worry sometimes about her, knowing that she has a condition.”

Hiro shook his head, “I told you, don’t worry about her! She’s strong enough that she even joined me on my may here to Camp Buddy before.”

Keitaro took another picture, “Oh! So that’s why you didn’t get lost on your way here. But in her condition, you shouldn’t have let your mom send you.”

Hiro looked down, “I know, I know. She was the one who insisted that she would go with me… too bad she couldn’t stay long enough to meet you again…”

Keitaro lowered his camera, “I just realized… if you’re here in Camp Buddy, then who is taking care of her?” 

Ms. Akiba had diagnosed chronic illness, one that made Keitaro worry about her frequently. She only started receiving treatment recently, since it lay mostly dormant for many years until about five years ago. Hepatitis C he believed she had…

“Well, I have my cousin, who is also a nurse taking care of her for a while.”

“Oh, I see... but, wouldn’t it be better if you were the one with her?” 

Keitaro knew how much Ms. Akiba’s health meant to Hiro. He never left her alone for too long out of worry. So why now? 

“Then that would mean we won’t get to spend a nice vacation together…” Hiro looked down, dejectedly. 

Keitaro took another picture, “But I can always come over to your place!” 

Hiro picked up the watering can, “I was very sad ever since you stopped dropping by. That’s why I’m really happy now that I get to spend time with you here!”

Keitaro looked down at his feet, guilt swelling in his chest. School had gotten super difficult for him the last few months. He had to focus exclusively on his classes, wanting to make sure his sister’s money didn’t go to waste. As a result, he had stopped going over to Hiro’s house, always being too tired to do anything else. 

“I’m sorry, Hiro… I wish I could somehow make up for it…”

Hiro smirked, “Hmmm… how about this? Once we finish this summer camp, promise me you’ll spend more time with me and my mom again. Like we used to!”

Keitaro smiled warmly, a gentle blush crossing his cheeks, “Oh… Hiro…”

He nodded, “Okay, I promise!” 

He held out his hand, sticking his pinkie out. 

Hiro’s face illuminated, wrapping his pinkie around Keitaro’s. 

“Oh, boy! I’m sure mom will be so happy to hear that!”

Keitaro smiled brightly, shaking his hand a few times to solidify the promise. He looked down at the pictures he’d taken. 

“Alrighty, I think I have enough pictures of the garden. Thank you for letting me take pictures of you!” 

Hiro smiled, “Anything for you, Keitaro!” 

Keitaro smiled, filing the pictures away into the binder. He stood up, dusting off his shorts and giving Hiro a bow. 

“I’ll see you later, Hiro!” 

“Bye bye!”

Keitaro skipped away, clutching his camera tightly. As he left Hiro to plant more, his mind wandered once again. 

_Having that conversation with Hiro reminded me of how much he’s been going through. Ms. Akiba has been weak and sickly for as long as I can remember. Hiro was the only one who was constantly taking care of her. And to think he would ask me out to a summer vacation despite his mom’s condition must only mean that I’ve missed out on a lot of things I should’ve done for him as a friend. I guess he really missed my company… I have to do my best to keep the promise I made to him!_

Keitaro huffed, pounding his chest a bit in determination. He was going to make up to Hiro for the time they missed out on!

Keitaro moved through the campgrounds, looking for his next subject for his activity. Most of the scouts were doing mundane activities, not anything exciting for his photos. 

He looked up and off into the woods, remembering Yoichi walking off before the activity started. He even saw Hunter walk into the woods when Yuri had dismissed them. 

“I wonder if I can find them in there…”

Keitaro broke into a jog, moving across the courtyard and into the forest. He welcomed the shade of the trees, relieving him of the sun’s rays. His bag bounced against his back gently as he moved, scanning through the trees. 

He hummed. 

“Now… which way did Yoichi and Hunter go?” 

He sighed, “I should be careful, don’t wanna get lost like last time…”

Taking deep breaths, he kept his eyes peeled for any movement. 

A rustle sounded off to his left. 

Keitaro skidded to a stop. He looked over nervously. 

“Huh? What moved in that bush over there…? Yoichi? H-Hunter? Is that you?”

Silence.

Keitaro was about to move on, before a large black and white dog leapt from the bushes. 

He yelped in fright, the dog landing in front of him, lip curled back into a snarl.

The dog began barking violently, it’s violet eyes boring into him intently. Keitaro’s knees quaked as he tried to stay calm. 

“S-Stay calm, Keitaro. If you don’t move, it won’t bite you.”

The dog took a few steps forward, growling lowly. 

Keitaro took a few steps back, “G-Good dog, nice dog... d-don’t hurt me, please!”

The dog reared up. 

“I swear I’m not delicious!”

The dog was about to jump and-

_“PHWEEEEET”_

A loud whistle rang out to his left. Keitaro watched the dog’s entire demeanor change. It’s glare retracted and it’s posture loosened. It turned to the sound of the whistle and began to pant happily. It’s tail wagged with excitement as it bounded off into the bushes. 

Keitaro watched in awe as the dog raced away. 

He regained the strength in his legs, and took a few steps forward to see who had called the dog away. When he moved through the bushes, he was met with a shocking sight. 

_“Who’s a good girl? Who’s a good girl? Yes! You are~!”_

Keitaro watched as Yoichi ran his fingers through the dogs fur, petting it happily as it licked his face in return. 

“Y-Yoichi…?!”

The large scout turned to him, a harsh scowl on his face, “Why the hell are you here?!” 

“I-I was looking for you, to ask if I could take pictures of you… for my activity…”

Yoichi’s expression changed. It went from angry to serious. 

“It’s dangerous here. You should’ve told me that you were gonna come here. What if I hadn’t been here? This dog would’ve attacked you.”

He sounded… worried about him. 

“Yoichi… are you-”

“Don’t get the wrong idea! I’m not worried about you!”

He went silent. 

“I’m worried that the scoutmasters will hurt my dog if she bite anyone.”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, “Th-That’s your dog!?” 

To his surprise, a soft smile graced Yoichi’s face. 

“Yeah, her name is Yuki. Pretty, isn't she?”

Yuki let out a happy bark at the sound of her name, licking Yoichi’s face in return. Keitaro was shocked to find out Yoichi had a pet here. But why was she out in the woods? Yoichi himself said it was dangerous. 

“Why isn’t she in the camp with us?”

The question was a bad move. Asking it made Yoichi’s attitude change immediately from loving, to furious. His face twisting into a dark glare, his eyes on the ground as he grit his teeth. 

“That stupid _Yoshinori_ wouldn’t allow me to keep Yuki there anymore just because she bit someone last year. She was just trying to protect me! Hah… isn’t that right, Yuki?”

Yuki wagged her tail in response. Keitaro rose a brow, still shaken from what happened, “Well, she nearly attacked me as well-”

“ _She’s just not used to seeing new people, alright?! You don’t understand how hard it is to be alone!!!”_

Keitaro jumped when Yoichi shouted at him, his eyes narrowing with anger and rage. He lowered his head, hugging his camera tightly. 

“I-I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have said that.”

An uncomfortable silence fell upon them. 

Yoichi sighed heavily, “I get why she’d attack people like that… hated by everyone… feared by everyone… abandoned.” 

Keitaro’s gaze softened. His tone, it was strange. Was he talking about Yuki? Or… himself?

“Yoichi…”

The large scout scoffed, his hands on either side of Yuki’s head, “Psh! No one knows what Yuki has been through!!!”

Keitaro looked down at Yuki, her tail wagging as Yoichi continued to pet her. 

“Yoichi… was Yuki… a stray dog?”

Yoichi sighed heavily, climbing to his feet. He gave Yuki a few more pats on the head before turning away from her, “Go, Yuki. Scram, before someone else sees you. I’ll come back to you as soon as I can, okay?”

Yuki looked a little sad, giving Yoichi’s hand a small lick before taking off into the bushes, disappearing. 

Silence fell back onto them, Keitaro feeling an awkward air settle onto them. 

Yoichi looked to the side, crossing his arms, “I found her lying on the street long ago. Cold, hungry, and alone. I could never forgive the person who made her feel like that… and you, Keitaro!”

The brunette jumped. 

Yoichi advanced on him, getting right in his face. With only a few centimetres distance between them, Keitaro felt his heart pound nervously. 

“ _Don’t you DARE tell anyone about Yuki and everything I just told you; or else I’m REALLY gonna kick you butt!”_

Keitaro nodded, “I-I won’t tell a soul!” 

Yoichi nodded, “Good! Now, you said you were here to take pictures, or something?” 

He nodded, “I was hoping if I could use you as a model, since you’re exploring the woods. It’s an interesting activity for nature advocacy.”

Yoichi rose a brow, “Nature what?” 

Keitaro shook his head, “N-Nevermind, uhhh… c-can you help me find Hunter though? I think I saw him come in here when our activity started.”

Yoichi sighed, shaking his head, “Are you kidding me? Ugh, fine, come with me, I’ll show you around while we look for Twinkerbell. I know these parts of the woods like my own backyard. And I don’t care if you take pictures for your dumb activity.”

Keitaro cracked a smile, following Yoichi as he walked off into the forest. As he began to take pictures of Yoichi, his mind was drawn back to Yuki. 

_I was surprised to see that Yoichi had a soft spot for animals. But I’m more surprised by how he defended Yuki… it seemed as if he wasn’t just talking about Yuki…_

He placed his photos in his bag, watching as Yoichi jumped over fallen trees and moving through bushes. Suddenly, he stopped. 

“Twinkerbell’s somewhere over there, I can smell him.”

Keitaro looked up at him, “Do you wanna come with me, Yoichi?” 

He shook his head, “Nah, I don’t feel like doing anything for this activity. When you two are done doing whatever you’re doing, go _straight_ back to camp! I don’t wanna have to find ya two losers if ya get lost, got it?”

Keitaro nodded, “Okay. Th-Thank you for letting me take some pictures of you, Yoichi!”

The scout said nothing, only waving his hand as he disappeared into the woods.

Keitaro sighed, rubbing his temple in exasperation. He made sure his bag of pictures was secure before moving in the direction Yoichi pointed to. 

Skipping across the grass, Keitaro held up his camera, taking a few pictures of the nature around him, to add some flair to his project. 

“Hmm… now where is… OH!”

Keitaro stopped in a small clearing, sunlight pouring in through the gaps in the trees. Sitting against a tree, he saw Hunter looking at something in his hands.

“Looks like he’s busy with something. Maybe I should go check out what he’s up to!” 

He skipped forward, moving closer to the small blonde, “Hi, Hunter!”

“Oh, Keitaro?”

Keitaro smiled, squatting down in front of him, “Whatcha doing?” 

“I-I’m doing my activity for ‘Nature Day’...” 

Keitaro smiled, “Me too! Mind if I take a few pictures of you? I’m taking pictures of the activities for a presentation like a poster or scrapbook!”

Hunter blushed, nodding nervously, “S-Sure… I don’t mind…”

Keitaro smiled, moving to Hunter’s side, “Thank you, Hunter! So, what are you… OH!”

Keitaro looked over Hunter’s shoulder and saw what he was doing. In his lap, a sketchbook laid open to a drawing of the forest. It was done completely in pencil, well shaded, and extremely detailed. Keitaro’s jaw dropped. 

“Wow! You drew that?! That looks amazing!” 

He took a picture, and Hunter looked over his shoulder at him, “Really…” T-Thanks… but it's just a sketch…”

Keitaro gasped, “A sketch? It looks complete to me already! That looks super cool! I didn’t know you could draw!”

Keitaro moved over to take another picture, and Hunter nodded, “Well… aside from reading, drawing is one of my favorite hobbies.”

Keitaro filed away another photo, “How come you didn’t tell me before that you draw?!”

Hunter erased something on his picture, “I wanted to show you my drawing last night.”

“Oh yeah! You suddenly disappeared last night! I knew I was forgetting something last night! I’m really sorry about that! Everyone just suddenly barged in!” Keitaro felt guilt swell in his chest, realizing what he had forgotten the day prior. 

Hunter shook his head, “It’s alright. I wanted to show it to you privately anyway…”

Keitaro rose a brow, “Are you shy to show it to everyone? I mean it’s really amazing what you can do.”

Hunter looked down at his drawing, “I… don’t want to. They might not be as interested as you are. But I knew you’d be interesting since you like taking pictures. It’s almost the same thing, I think.”

Keitaro shook his head, “But drawing something with your own hands takes more skill than just taking pictures of things already there! You know, you might even earn a badge with that skill!”

Hunter’s face flushed a dark red, looking up at Keitaro nervously, “You really think so…?”

He nodded, “Yeah! I’m sure if everyone finds out how good you are at drawing, they’d be super impressed! I wish I knew how to draw like this too!” 

Hunter’s head shot up, his eyes wide with wonder. He suddenly closed his sketchbook and jumped onto his knees, leaning up to Keitaro. The brunette lowered his camera in shock, the blonde only a few inches from him. 

“I-It’s not that difficult, Keitaro! If y-you want, I can teach you how! A-And, I have more sketches to show you back at the cabin that you might like! Oh! And I can try drawing your face too if you’d like me to! It won’t take long!”

Keitaro chuckled, placing his hands on Hunter’s chest, “Hahaha! Take it easy, Hunter!” 

Hunter blushed darkly, falling back onto his rear in embarrassment, “Ah! I’m sorry! I just got really excited!”

He took a deep breath in, leaning back against the tree, “It’s just that I don’t really know anyone who appreciates the things I can do…”

Keitaro smiled, moving over and sitting down next to him, “That’s why I’m here, Hunter! I’m your friend! Don’t forget that no matter what!”

The small scout’s blush only deepened, and he clutched his sketchbook to his chest. 

“Show me your drawing again when we get the chance, alright?”

Hunter nodded, a bright smile on his face, “I promise I’ll draw a good portrait of you, one of these days!”

Keitaro chuckled, “Eh? You don’t have to!”

Keitaro smiled, watching as Hunter opened his sketchbook back up and returned to drawing, telling about how he started it. As Keitaro took a few more pictures, he smiled and let his mind wander a bit. 

_It was the first time I saw Hunter being that excited. He’s actually really fun to be with! Seeing his cheerful side is a lot cuter than I thought. I guess he really just needs some time to get to know people. I hope he learns to be open to everyone else as he was just now._

It was about ten minutes before Keitaro deemed he had enough pictures. He filed them away and closed his bag, rising to his feet. 

“Well, I’m gonna head back to the campsite. Wanna join me?” He asked, receiving a shake in return. 

“I wanna draw some more before I head back. I’ll be okay. Th-Thank you for talking to me, Keitaro…” He gave him another smile, making Keitaro’s cheeks flush. 

"No problem, Hunter! Thank you for letting me take pictures of you! You guys can review them and tell me which ones you don't want me to use once I report back to Ms. Yuri. I think I have enough for my activity now."

Hunter nodded, returning back to his drawing silently. 

Keitaro began his short trek out of the woods, sighing happily at his collection of photos. He wasn't expecting to have so many emotional moments today alongside it though, he felt super drained. 

Wanting to let Yuri know he was finished, when he exited the woods, he made a beeline straight for the scoutmaster's cabin. 

He stepped up onto the porch and knocked on the door.

_"Just a minute!"_

He heard Yuri yell from behind the door, occupied at the moment. Keitaro took a step back, lacing his fingers together to wait for his scoutmaster.

As he waited, he took a deep breath in, sighing at the smell of the fresh air. He felt pleased with himself. He had gathered a lot of photos for his activity, and had learned a lot about his cabinmates in the process. 

He hadn't expected the day to be so tiresome. He felt a bit drained, and was ready to call it a night. 

_"Just get it over with."_

Keitaro's ear twitched. He looked past the corner of his eye, peering in the direction of the voice

With his back against the cabin, he saw Taiga standing afar, watching with disinterest as Eduard fished through the flower bed. 

Keitaro kept his head low, not wanting to draw attention to himself. But he couldn't help but watch the fiery-haired scout with interest. What was his Nature Day activity? 

He watched Taiga roll his eyes, walking away from Eduard without a word. Keitaro acted as if he wasn't watching the boy, his eyes darting from side to side. 

He watched Taiga stop in front of cabin two, his gaze on a small, wilting flower. 

The scout snorted. 

_"Your not getting any sun, stupid."_

Keitaro's jaw dropped when Taiga squatted in front of the flower and began digging around it. Taiga dug with care, making sure not to damage the flower in any way. 

After a few minutes, Taiga wrapped both his hands around the base of the flower. With a small grunt, Taiga pulled the flower in its entirety, roots included, from the ground. 

He stood up slowly, looking around for a different spot to plant the flower. 

A few moments passed, and he walked over to the path-walk, a place where sunlight was never blocked by trees or buildings. 

Keitaro kept his head down as Taiga used one hand to dig another hole into the ground, making enough space for the flower.

Once the hole was big enough, Taiga set the flower into the ground gentle, settling the dirt around it. 

_“There you go, you dummy. Go in a better spot next time.”_

What happened next caused Keitaro’s heart to go aflutter. 

Taiga looked down at the flower, and flashed a gentle smile. Not his usual cheeky smirk. But a soft, warm, gentle grin, eyes relaxed and brows loose. 

Keitaro looked away quickly, not wanting to draw attention to himself. 

Suddenly, the door to the scoutmasters office opened. 

“Hello, dear. So sorry for the wait! Are you done with your activity?” Yuri asked, flashing a bright smile. 

Keitaro nodded, “Y-Yes, Ms. Yuri!”

She nodded, “Come on in hun. I’m excited to see what you have!” 

Keitaro smiled, walking in behind Yuri. In his mind, he remembered the pictures that he put in the separate binder in his bag. Five pictures were in that binder, the ones he had planned on putting in his journal. 

Natsumi smiled as he swept. 

Hiro grinning brightly as he watered his crops. 

Yoichi looking over his shoulder with a half smirk as he swung around a tree. 

Hunter looking down at his sketchbook with a soft blush. 

And the secret picture he took of Taiga, smiling down at the flower.

* * *

_And with that, today’s activity reached its conclusion…_

Yuri was smiling brightly, looking around at the group of scouts, all dirty from the field work of the activity. 

“Congratulations, everyone! Our ‘Camp Buddy: Nature Day’ is a success! I’m so proud that all of you worked hard to take this activity seriously! Mr. Hamasaki did a great job cleaning the campgrounds! We also have a new vegetable garden patch right beside the cafeteria, thanks to Mr. Akiba! I also have to give credit to our campers like Mr. Springfield and Mr. Yukimura who expressed their appreciation of nature through different ways! Mr. Nagame, you made an excellent suggestion in collecting pictures of our activities! I’m very excited to see the scrapbook you make! I’m so glad to hear that you all had fun! Now, all of you please go wash up then proceed to the mess hall for dinner, okay?”

Keitaro sighed heavily, smiling after Yuri finished her speech. To his right, Hiro cried out happily. 

“Finally! FOOD!!! I’m super hungry from all that fieldwork! I’ll go ahead, guys! Don’t blame me if they’re out of pizza by the time you get there!”

Hiro took off across the grounds, his arms up in the air with excitement. 

Yoichi smirked, rolling his shoulders, “Not if I get there first! Hahaha!” 

The large scout raced after Hiro, cackling happily. 

Natsumi took a few steps forward, “Hey, you two! At least take a bath first before you go to the mess hall!”

Hunter’s stomach growled, I’m hungry too…”

Without another word, Hunter walked to the mess hall, leaving Natsumi and Keitaro standing in the grounds. The tall scout let out a long sigh, “I guess there’s no cleaning up then. How about you Keitaro? Are you coming?”

He shook his head, “I think I’ll go wash up back at the cabin first.”

Natsumi smiled, “That’s good, Keitaro. Meet us at the mess hall once you’re ready!”

Keitaro nodded, walking away back to their cabin. 

Welcoming the cool air, Keitaro stepped into the room. He went straight to the bathroom, wanting to wash the muck and grime of the day away. When he stepped into the bathroom, he walked up to his locker, opening it and hanging his bag and camera into the locker. 

“Aahh… today was so fun! I should probably update my journal later while I can still remember things clearly-”

_“Hey guys, they left the place open! Hurry up and get in!”_

Keitaro’s entire frame froze, “Th-That voice!”

He looked over his shoulder to see Taiga, Eduard, and Lee standing in the doorway of their bathroom. 

“Ugh… I wonder why our bathroom suddenly ran out of water? Just when I needed to freshen up my face! Ugh! I feel so dirty!” Eduard wailed, shaking his hands. Lee looked down at his feet, “The water bill probably wasn’t paid it's respective dues in time.”

Taiga snarled at them, “Shush, you two! We’re only here to wash up a bit. I don’t want them seeing us using their bathroom!”

And then, Lee looked right at him. 

“Taiga… someone’s behind you.”

Keitaro turned around fully, looking directly at them, “U-Ummm…”

He shook slightly in place, unsure of what to do in the presence of the intruders. Taiga sneered at him, raising a notched brow, “Hah! Look who’s here! If it isn’t our goody-two-shoes buddy, Keitaro!”

He took a step back, “W-What are you guys doing here?”

Taiga rolled his eyes, “Weren’t you listening?! We need to use this bathroom because ours is broken!”

Lee stepped up, holding his head up, “Did you not know that our room is just on the other side of this cabin? So the facilities here are technically ours as well.”

Eduard crossed his arms, “Maybe he has no plans on sharing with us?”

Keitaro smiled nervously, wanting to diverge from a potential fight, “It’s alright… you can use our bathroom however you like-”

“Shut up! I didn’t ask you to speak!” Taiga snapped. 

Keitaro reeled back, fear filling his chest again. But this time, he’d had it. Keitaro took in a deep breath, furrowed his brows, and stepped forward.

“What is wrong with you guys? I never did anything to any of you!” 

Taiga’s demeanor changed. Shocked at Keitaro’s rebellion, he clenched his fists and snorted angrily. Suddenly, Taiga advanced on him. 

Keitaro took a step back, and was about to duck out of the way and run from the bathroom. However, Taiga slammed his hand onto the wall on the left side of Keitaro’s head. Eduard and Lee stood off to Taiga’s left, blocking Keitaro’s way out. 

“What? You dare talk back to me now?! That’s it! You’re gonna get it this time!”

Eduard snorted, “That’s right. Show him who’s the boss here~” 

“It’s a wrong decision you’ve made, given the circumstances that we’ve got you outnumbered,” Lee added, fixing his glasses. 

Keitaro felt the confidence he had deteriorated. They were right. There was nothing he could do now. He’d been cornered. 

“No one is going to protect you this time! I’ve been waiting for this moment ever since I _saw_ your stupid face!” Taiga grinned slyly, flashing his fangs intimidatingly.

Keitaro winced, pressing himself back on the wall as if trying to phase through it. What had he done? He didn’t understand. No matter how hard he tried, everything he did seemed to upset Taiga even further. His lip quivered as his eyes began to water. 

“I… I’m sorry…” He whimpered. 

What was he apologizing for? He didn’t know. But he felt guilty all of a sudden. Something he was doing was causing pain and anger in Taiga, and he didn’t want that. He wanted to help Taiga. Be his friend. Not to cause him pain and ferocity. 

Taiga snarled, “Your apology won’t do anything!”

The fiery-haired scout snorted, his eyes boring into Keitaro’s, “You should know your place! Just because everyone here treats you special, doesn’t mean they actually give a SHIT about you! Everything is just business here!”

His eyes narrowed, “Everyone will pamper you at first- make sure everything’s going perfect… but the moment you screw up once, they’ll forget all the good you ever did!!!”

Keitaro listened to him rant, the confusion in him only rising and raising more and more questions. 

“W-What are you saying? Why are you even mad at me about that?!” He demanded, trying to connect Taiga’s rage with whatever he had done. 

Taiga only scoffed, “Why should I tell you, huh? It was stupid of me to join again this year, thinking the people here were capable of giving another chance!”

What? 

“They’re all talking about teamwork and friendship; yeah right! The only thing they’re good at is GANGING UP on the wrong person without even knowing the truth!”

Taiga was shouting now, the pain in his eyes stronger then Keitaro had ever seen it. 

Taiga wasn’t talking about him… 

He was talking about something else. Something Keitaro _reminded_ him of. That’s why he was mad. He wasn’t angry with Keitaro. There was something… in his past he was angry at. 

_Taiga’s words burned into my head… something surely happened before with him, and everyone at Camp Buddy. I can feel that his hate isn’t actually about me… could it be…_

The pain in his eyes, behind it, Keitaro could see the cries and desperate pleas for help.

_Do you trust me to understand you? And see through your words? What happened to you, so cause to be so full of hate like this?_

Eduard let out a groan in displeasure, “Agh! Look at him! He’s not even paying attention to what you’re saying, Taiga!”

Lee snarled, crossing his arms, “He’s really just the same as everyone else. They think our opinions are not even worth listening to.”

Keitaro didn’t reply, he had nothing else to say. 

“Heh. Too scared to talk, eh?” Taiga sneered, cracking a vicious smile, completely opposite of the one Keitaro saw earlier today. 

Eduard snickered, tapping his foot, “Maybe he’s just thirsty, Taiga?”

Keitaro’s eyes widened.

Lee sneered, “Perfect timing. That toilet bowl over there appears to be loaded too!”

_Aw shit-_

“HAHAHA! It’s lunch time, Keitaro!”

He needed to act now! No more pretending.

Taiga suddenly seized him by his hair, fingers gripping his brunette locks with force. Keitaro winced at the pain, teeth gritting. 

He needed to get out of there, to prevent any potential violence, or at least any more. He needed to stun them long enough to get away. Nothing else was needed. 

Keitaro’s hand shot up and seized Taiga’s wrist, shocking the red-head. And it wasn’t Keitaro’s rebellion that surprised him. 

It was the immeasurable, and painful amount of strength that Keitaro had grabbed him with. 

Keitaro stood rigid, vice grip on Taiga’s wrist, shouting ‘let me go’ with his eyes. When Taiga didn’t budge, looking ready to drag him from the wall, Keitaro sighed mentally. 

He tightened his grip, Taiga wincing in pain. He was ready to hear that resounding _crack_ of Taiga’s wrist bone before-

“ _WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?”_

The four boys jumped in fright and whirled around, seeing Goro standing in the doorway of the bathroom, eyes narrow with anger. 

_“S-Shit!”_ Taiga hissed, immediately releasing Keitaro’s hair. Keitaro did the same, pulling his hand off of Taiga’s wrist.

“E-Eh! We were just playing around, sir!” Eduard stammered, getting in-between Goro and Taiga, trying to block the view. 

Lee nodded spastically, “It’s true, sir! Taiga was just giving Keitaro a friendly embrace!”

Taiga turned to Keitaro, flashing a fake smile while tucking his wrist to his chest, “Tell him, Keitaro!”

Keitaro said nothing. He was more worried about how Taiga was holding his wrist, hiding it from Goro and even him. 

Lee laughed nervously, “Oh, wow! Look at the time! Shall we embark to the mess hall?”

Eduard nodded, patting Lee’s shoulder, “Y-Yeah, I’m famished~”

Taiga nudged Keitaro with his elbow, trying to appear as friendly as possible. 

“See you later, Keitaro!”

With that, the three scrambled out of the room. Right before he disappeared, Keitaro saw Taiga look down at his wrist, teeth gritted in pain. When he moved his other hand, to Keitaro’s horror…

He revealed a dark, purplish bruise where his hand had been.

When the three disappeared, Goro led Keitaro out of the bathroom and into the main cabin. The two stood there in silence. 

Goro huffed, “So you’re Keitaro Nagame, am I right?”

Keitaro nodded, “Y-Yes, sir…”

“Are you stirring up some trouble with those three?” 

“No…”

“Then why are you pretending to be friends with them?”

Keitaro pursed his lips, “Th-They’re my friends-”

“Don’t lie to me!”

Keitaro winced. 

“How come you’re calling them your friends, despite what they’ve done to you?” Goro demanded, hands on his hips. 

Keitaro shook his head, “I’m sure they’re good people… I just need to do my best to understand them so they can change for the better…”

Goro grunted, “Big words, but your actions do not follow. I know someone who’s as stubborn as you. There are just some things you can’t change, boy.”

Keitaro’s gaze fell to his feet dejectedly. 

The older man hummed, “Tell me… why did you join this camp?”

Keitaro looked up at the man in surprise. That came out of nowhere. 

Why did he join? Well… he was invited by Hiro for starters. But he’d begun to see things in the camp that made him happy to be there. Improving himself as a person. Meeting new people. Understanding others better. Trying to help those in need. He had a few reasons. But for some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to answer. Would that answer be enough? 

Goro sighed, “Can’t answer my question, I see…”

The man huffed, “If you have no real purpose for being here, then this place must have really lost it's meaning.”

Keitaro looked up at him nervously. 

_Is this why I heard from Sir Goro that he could be forced to close the camp?_ _Or was he just angry then, when he said those things to Scoutmaster Yoshi…?_

He furrowed his brows in determination. 

_I should at least give him an answer to change his mind!_

“I… I want to make the greatest memories here with my friends!”

Goro furrowed his brows angrily. 

“This camp was meant to create greater things! Things that one will forever carry with him... it's more than just puny memories or friends that fleet by like nothings more than dust in the wind!” He shouted, Keitaro taking a step back fearfully. 

“B-But-”

“STOP! I’ve heard enough to know how well you understand the essence of this place. Now run along. I don’t want to see you getting in trouble with your so-called _friends_ ever again.”

Keitaro looked down, “Yes… sir…”

He quickly turned around and left the cabin, eager to get away from the large, intimidating man. He heard Goro speak again, but didn’t stick around to hear what he said. 

Once he was outside, he took a deep breath in relief. 

_I don’t know which terrified me more… the fact that I almost got hurt by Taiga, or the conversation I had with Sir Goro? What they’d said confirmed everything I’d felt about an event in the past causing trouble for Camp Buddy to this day._

Keitaro took in a few deep breaths to calm himself. 

_I should take my mind off of it for now. Everyone’s waiting for me at the mess hall. I should just keep this to myself… I don’t want them to worry about me._

* * *

When Keitaro entered the mess hall, the sun had already disappeared over the horizon. He took a few minutes to calm himself down and look as presentable as possible. Most of the scouts had already gone back to their cabins for the night, leaving only Keitaro and the rest of his cabin-mates with the mess hall to themselves.

“Oh, guys! There’s Keitaro!”

Keitaro heard Hiro call out to him. He put on the best smile he could and skipped over to them, sitting down in-between Hiro and Hunter. 

“Sorry I’m late, everyone.”

Hiro pouted, crossing his arms, “What took you so long?! We were all waiting for you!” 

Yoichi rose a brow, “Oh, really? Weren’t you the one who couldn’t wait to dig in?”

Hiro glared at him, “Shush!”

Natsumi looked at Keitaro, his brows furrowed in worry, “Were you able to wash up, Keitaro? You look exhausted.”

Hunter pushed a plate of food towards him, “He must be hungry… here, Keitaro. We’ve saved some for you.”

He took the plate gratefully, “A-Ah… thank you…” 

Yoichi leaned against the table, his head on his hand, “You’re lucky there’s still some left! This place was jam-packed earlier!”

Keitaro smiled nervously, taking a bite of his food. He didn’t realize how tired he was. Today was an emotional rollercoaster, and he was ready for bed already.

Hiro hummed, leaning a bit closer to Keitaro, “Hmmm… you’re acting a bit weird, Keitaro. Did something happen?”

The brunette shook his head, “Ah! No, no! I’m fine! I’m just hungry!”

Unfortunately, Hiro saw right through him. 

“Hmph. You’re not fooling me.”

Keitaro smiled, “I-I… I was just trying to recall what happened in the past few days for my journal entry for tonight…”

Hiro sat up, “Oh? Why didn’t you say so? Hey guys!”

The other three turned to him. 

“How about we help Keitaro complete his journal entry right now?” 

Natsumi clapped his hands, “That sounds splendid!”

While Keitaro was flattered at the notion, he looked back at Hiro with unease, “B-But… my journal is back at the cabin.”

But Hiro only smiled wider, “I’ve got it right here!”

From behind him, seemingly out of nowhere, Hiro pulled out Keitaro’s journal, placing it on the table next to his plate. Keitaro looked at it with shock. 

“T-That’s my journal! How long did you have this, Hiro?”

He only chuckled, “I’m always prepared when it comes to you, Keitaro!”

Yoichi hummed, “Oh, so you guys were talking about that stupid notebook.” 

Hiro cocked a playful brow at the large scout, “Hey! Don’t act like you don’t care! You’ve been yapping _allllll_ day about whether you’re in his journal or not! I’ll bet you’ve already sneak a peek at it!”

But Yoichi only snorted, unaffected by the jab at him, “Hey! You’re one to talk. I’m not the one who secretly stole him from! And besides, I bet I’m not even in that stupid journal!”

Keitaro shook his head, “I’ve already put you in, Yoichi!”

Yoichi’s face softened, and Natsumi smiled brightly, “I’m pretty sure all of us are included in the journal! Right, Keitaro?” 

He nodded happily, “Yep!”

“E-Even me…?” Hunter stammered, looking up at Keitaro nervously. 

Keitaro nodded. 

Hiro laughed almost triumphantly, crossing his arms, “I must be the one with the most exposure so far! I’m his best friend after all!”

Keitaro chuckled at Hiro’s proclamation, and Natsumi clapped his hands again, “Let’s get started, shall we? What was your last entry, Keitaro?”

“The last one I wrote was for the second day, the day we prepared for the trip,” He explained, scratching his chin in thought. 

Natsumi smiled in response, “Oh! Then you’ll have fun writing up the next one! It was your first outdoor camping trip after all! What part do you remember the most about that day?” 

Keitaro let out a hum in thought, looking down at his journal. There were so many moments that day he cherished. All the moments he’d spent with his friends warmed his heart, but what part did he love the most?

He smiled. 

“The sunset, definitely.”

They all looked at him in confusion. 

“The sunset? What do you mean?” Hunter asked. 

Keitaro smiled at him, “The moment we had? All of us just talking to each other in the light of the sun as it sets over the horizon? I think that was my favorite moment of the whole trip. I got to learn more about all of you!” 

Silence. 

The four all looked away, trying to hide blushes crossing their cheeks. Keitaro’s head whirled back and forth with worry, “Did I… say something wrong?” 

Natsumi shook his head, “N-No! It’s okay, Keitaro. I guess… your answer took us by surprise. You always say things that just… warm the heart. And I think I can speak for everyone, even Yoichi, when I say that.”

Keitaro’s heart hammered in his chest. He looked back and forth between everyone, who all nodded in agreement with Natsumi. 

“He’s right, you embarrass us every time you say stuff like that! Not that it’s bad!” Hiro replied, patting Keitaro’s shoulder. 

The brunette blushed, not meaning to do that to his friends. But why was he… happy, that they felt that way? 

Natsumi cleared his throat, “Now that we’ve recalled the one important moment of Keitaro’s day, I think he can start writing his entry!”

Keitaro smiled, nodding in agreement. He opened his notebook, picking up his pencil with a hum. 

_Journal Entry No. 2: July 5th (18:55)_

_“This is Keitaro Nagame! This is my second entry for my time at Camp Buddy, recalling my third and fourth days here!_

_On the morning of the third day, it was time for our camping trip! I had SO much fun taking pictures in the woods with everyone… even if I did get lost. I got to meet two more scouts named Seto and Felix, though! I kinda found out the hard way that they were actually part of Taiga’s ground when he and I had a confrontation. I don’t know why he’s so angry, but I knew I wouldn’t let it get me down._

_Pretty soon, I got back together with everyone, and we made it to the campsite just in time to see an amazing sunset! It was a day I shared with my friends that I’d never forget. That night, I pitched a tent with Hunter, started a fire with Natsumi, ate some of Hiro’s delicious cooking, and even shared some s’mores with Yoichi. We got so much done in one day that I got really excited for the next one!_

_Unfortunately, I was kind of let down when we suddenly had to return to camp because of Sir Goro, Camp Buddy’s founder. I overheard him and Scoutmaster Yoshi arguing about ‘last year’s incident’. After that I got to talk with Sir Aiden, who really inspired me with his hard work and told us how he was helping here in the camp to earn money for his education!_

_Oh, and of course, I got this journal from Ms. Yuri! It’s been a really busy couple of first days here. I’ve learned so much and met so many people that I can’t wait to see what else is coming my way here at camp!_

_Yours truly,_

_Keitaro Nagame”_

* * *

“Phew! I think that’s it for today!”

Keitaro closed his journal, letting out a satisfied sigh. 

The lights in the mess hall had been turned off by Aiden a few minutes ago, closing the building down officially. 

Hunter smiled, clapping his hands softly, “Good thing we finished just before the scoutmasters turned off the lights.”

Hiro nodded, stretching out his arms across the table, “Wow… we stayed here for a long time!”

Keitaro felt a little embarrassed, having kept his friends there for so long. Natsumi smiled, grinning happily, “That was fun, wasn’t it? I have to say, I’m surprised Yoichi stayed until we finished.”

Yoichi snorted, rolling his eyes, “Don’t get me wrong. I just had nothing else going on for tonight, anyway.”

Natsumi let out a small yawn, “Now that everything’s done, let’s call it a day! It’s closing time anyway. Let’s head back to the cabin and get some sleep.”

Keitaro smiled, picking up his journal and tucking it to his chest, “Thank you again for helping me fill my journal up tonight, everyone!”

Hiro wrapped his arms around Keitaro, giving the brunette a tight hug, “Aww! Don’t mention it, Keitaro!”

“Just tell us if you ever need someone to help you recall events of the day!” Natsumi stood from his seat, patting Keitaro’s head. 

As they all stood up to make their way back to the cabin, Keitaro looked at them all with soft eyes, his cheeks warming slightly. 

_I was thankful I was able to spend time with everyone tonight. I thought I would stay upset over that incident with Sir Goro and Taiga... but I’m lucky that I have my friends by my side to cheer me up!_

Keitaro watched his cabin mates walk back to the cabin under the night sky, feeling happiness swell in his chest. He hadn’t expected to get so close to them all today, learning all that he did. Even about Taiga. 

If this was just the first five days, he wondered what he’d learn over the course of the entire term. 

He’d always be grateful for today's activity. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PHEW!!! I'm on a role!!
> 
> I was SUPER excited to write this day! I was originally not going to include the activities of the other characters and make up something completely different, however, I wanted to still give Keitaro insight on each of the other's routes and story-lines, since they'll still be present. That's where I thought of Keitaro taking pictures OF the activities would be a good excuse for him to jump from person to person. 
> 
> We even see Taiga contribute a wee bit, not that he'd ever say it aloud~
> 
> I also included some more little sneaky-peaks of Keitaro's route through his dialogue with Hiro. I'm super stoked to get to that part of the story. Hina, Hiro's mom, is a big player in Keitaro's route cuz I love her she's so sweet!
> 
> Also, also... Keitaro seems to be holding something back about himself. A physical trait it seems. We saw it briefly in day 2, when he "helped" Hiro get into his uniform, and now, we've seen it again. Keitaro was ready to defend himself, and Taiga appeared rather shocked at the strength he showed. Hmmmm, maybe our sunshine bby is stronger then he looks~~
> 
> Well, I'm done teasin' ya'll! I'm ready to shower and hit the hay! I hope ya'll enjoyed Day 5 as much as I loved writing it!
> 
> And next time, huhuhuhuhu, we get our first steamy scene, if you remember day 6 well~~~ 
> 
> Finally gonna make use of that mature rating XP
> 
> Welp, I'm done ranting! For updates on Sleepsong and more CB shenanigans (and shitposting in general from me), check me out on Twitter @TiraminaFW!
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS AL AROUND~


	7. Day 6: Steamy Desires

The sun was rising over the horizon, casting it's rays over the dewy ground. The camp was sleeping soundly, undisturbed by the morning light. 

Keitaro rolled over in his sleep, tucking into his blanket. The light of the sun was gently moving over his bed, trying to rouse him from his slumber. 

But Keitaro pulled the blanket over his face, shielding his eyes from the unwanted rays. He sighed deeply, smiling blissfully as he welcomed another hour of sleep.

“WAKE UP, EVERYONE! GET UP, GET UP!”

A loud voice erupted through the cabin, followed by a screeching whistle. 

“HUH!?” Keitaro shot up in fright, his heart pounding his chest. Hiro slowly rose up, rubbing his eyes of sleep, “I’m still sleepy…”

Hunter sat up, rubbing his cheek sleepily, “Mnn… what’s going on…?”

When Natsumi rose from his bed, a bright smile shone on his face, “Scoutmaster Yoshi! You’re back! What did you do yesterday, Scoutmaster Yoshi?”

He smiled brightly, “I was busy preparing a special surprise for all of you! As your scoutmaster, I vowed to provide you all with an endless amount of “fun” activities where you’ll also learn plenty of important things! I am a leader that supports recreation and entertainment amongst all my campers! You’ll never have a dull day with me around! And it's my job as a scoutmaster-”

“Would you keep it down?! I’m trying to sleep!”

Yoichi shot up from bed, snarling at the man, “Don’t you have to be annoying somewhere else?”

Yoshi laughed heartily, unfazed by the scout’s aggression, “A grump in the morning as always, Yoichi! I want you all to get changed into your uniforms in preparation for our exciting activity! I’ll see all of you outside for our morning assembly!”

At the end of his speech, Yoshi whirled on his heel and marched out of the cabin, leaving the scouts to prepare for this “mystery” activity. 

Natsumi was the first to hop out of bed, stretching his arms a few times before clapping his hands loudly, “You heard the scoutmaster, everyone! Let’s get dressed up!”

Hiro was next to rise, popping his back a few times, “I wonder what we’ll be doing today? Scoutmaster Yoshi seemed pretty excited about it…”

Keitaro yawned, flexing his toes as he stretched, “I’m really curious too!”

Yoichi sighed, flopping onto his back, “Hmph! Don’t expect too much. I’m sure it’ll be something lame again!”

Keitaro chuckled, slowly standing up from bed. He walked over to Yoichi, poking the large scout in the side, “Come on, Yoichi! Just give it a try!”

The violette sighed, rolling over in bed and onto the floor. The brunette chuckled, watching Yoichi crawl away into the bathroom, mumbling to himself.

* * *

“Alright! Looks like everyone’s here! Follow me, campers! This way!” 

When everyone had gathered into the courtyard, Yoshi was standing there waiting, tapping his foot impatiently. Whatever he had in store for them, he was extremely excited for. Keitaro and his cabin-mates had only just gotten there and Yoshi was already ordering them to move out, not giving much explanation as to what they were doing. 

Keitaro rose a brow, a curious smile on his face, “Scoutmaster Yoshi looks super excited. This surprise must be huge!”

Natsumi smiled, rubbing his chin in thought as they all followed behind their scoutmaster, “I think I gave an idea of what he’s going to show us…”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, stuffing his hands in his pockets, “Don’t get your hopes up.”

Hiro sighed, turning back to face him, “Come on, Yoichi! Don’t be such a killjoy so early in the morning!”

Hunter tapped Hiro on the shoulder, pointing the rest of the scouts moving ahead of them, “I think we need to hurry up. We’re getting left behind by everyone else…”

Keitaro nodded, hoping in front of everyone, “Ah, right! Let’s follow them!”

Keitaro led his cabin-mates forward, the large group moving past the grounds and towards the scoutmaster’s cabin. Moving past the building, Yoshi led them onto a path that moved past a small storage shed. 

He saw Yoshi lead them past a large gate, entering a separated section of the camp. 

Keitaro gasped. 

“TADA!”

Yoshi threw his arms up to show them a large obstacle course, complete with a track, pool, and rock-climbing wall. 

Keitaro spun in a few circles, his eyes darting around trying to look at everything at once. The other scouts all looked around in awe, chitchatting amongst themselves excitedly at the sight.

“Our very own obstacle course! Isn’t this exciting?!”

Keitaro jumped up and down excitedly, clapping his hands, “Wah! Amazing!!”

Hiro hopped to his side, grabbing Keitaro’s arm and shaking it, “Oh wow! It’s exactly like the one from those game shows!”

Natsumi’s jaw dropped, “Scoutmaster Yoshi, just how long did it take you to finish this?!”

The man pounded his chest proudly, “I’ve been working on this since the start of this year’s summer. I was able to finish this up thanks to the extra help I got yesterday! I have arranged a series of activities for all of you to do today! This is going to be so much fun! First off, we’ll be starting with track and field as scheduled and then-”

“LAME! This is probably going to be a mess just like last time!” 

Everyone jumped in shock when Yoichi let out a disgruntled howl, crossing his arms indifferently. Natsumi immediately faced the scout, his brows furrowed in anger, “Yoichi! Stop that! Scoutmaster Yoshi is doing his best for all of us! Can’t you see how much effort he’s put into all of us having an activity together?”

Yoichi only pointed to the sky, “Hate to burst your bubble, Mr. Perfect, but it's gonna rain anyway.”

Keitaro looked up into the sky, noticing that thick layer of clouds hanging over them. They did seem pretty dark in color, heavy with water. 

Hunter hummed, twiddling his thumbs together, “Hmmm… the sky does look really gloomy…”

Natsumi looked up as well, “What? Are you sure it’s not just because we’re having cloudy weather today? Clouds don’t always mean rain…”

Yoichi snorted, “Duh! None of you can tell it’s gonna pour just from the smell? I hate getting wet. I’m outta here!”

Yoichi spun on his heel and marched away, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Natsumi shook with anger, taking a few steps forward after him, “YOICHI! Get back here!!”

But Yoshi placed his hand on his shoulder to hold him back, “Leave him be, Natsumi. A buddy shall never force another to do something against his will!”

Natsumi sighed in defeat, nodding his head in understanding. 

Yoshi smiled, patting his shoulder reassuringly, “Now, let’s begin our activities! Nothing can possibly ruin this day!”

**_BOOM_ **

A large clap of thunder exploded. 

“Oh no…”

Lighting cracked across the sky, and in an instant, rain was pouring from the clouds above. Everyone found themselves suddenly soaked to the bone. Keitaro put his hands over his head, trying to look at the sky. 

“Yoichi was right!” He cried, feeling his clothes beginning to stick to his body. 

“And it's coming down hard!” Hiro cried, taking off his bandanna and hanging over his head, trying to shield himself.

Hunter tucked himself into Keitaro’s side, beginning to shiver, “If we stay out here, we’re gonna get sick!”

Yoshi cleared his throat, “We’ll cancel today’s activities for now! Everyone please head back to the cabin in an orderly fashion!”

Keitaro, Hiro, and Hunter immediately booked it, running across the field back to their cabin. Natsumi hung behind them with Yoshi, speaking with him for a few moments. 

Keitaro did his best to shield himself and his friends from the onslaught of rain crashing upon them. He heard another pair of footsteps, and looked over his shoulder to see Natsumi coming up behind them, jogging quickly. 

Their shoes squelched in the mud as they filled up with water, clothes sticking to skin and hair flopping about. 

Keitaro sighed when he saw the cabin, picking up his pace to open the door, beckoning everyone inside. 

The three all rushed in, and Keitaro entered behind them, closing the door to finally escape the rain. 

They all sighed, water dripping onto the wooden floor. 

“Oh man! I’m soaking wet!” Hiro whined, removing his shoes and peeling his thoroughly soaked socks off his feet.

Keitaro groaned, removing his own shoes, “Me too…” 

Natsumi looked outside, letting out a heavy sigh, “Wow, it’s really pouring outside…”

Hunter sat down on the floor, taking off his shoes and socks, along with his tie, “Looks like a storm…”

Natsumi sat down next to him, “In that case, it’ll probably be raining all day…”

From within the cabin, a fifth voice cleared their throat. 

“I hate to say ‘I told you so’ but… I TOLD YOU SO!”

Yoichi cackled from his bed, clutching his stomach at the sigh of his cabin-mates proved wrong and drenched to the skin. Hiro growled, throwing one of his socks at him, “Ugh! You don’t have to rub it in!”

Natsumi sighed, leaning on his hand, “I’m actually impressed, Yoichi.”

Keitaro nodded in agreement, Yoichi raising a brow.

“Yeah… he knew it was going to rain just by the smell in the air.”

The large scout snorted, crossing his arms with pride, “Hahahaha! I really am awesome, aren’t I?”

Hiro scoffed, “Talk about animal instinct.”

Yoichi only rolled his eyes, “Shut up, Torch-head.”

While the two began to stare each other down, Keitaro turned to Natsumi, fiddling with his tie, “What are we supposed to do now, Natsumi?”

The blunette shrugged, “I don’t know… I still haven’t received an order from Scoutmaster Yoshi. Speaking of which, he looked quite disappointed…”

Yoichi snorted, “Heheh, it literally rained on his parade~”

Keitaro looked down at his feet, a pang of guilt in his chest, “I feed bad for him… he’s been working so hard on that obstacle course for the past few days…" 

Natsumi gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, smiling gently, "Don't worry, Keitaro! I'm sure we'll get to have fun with the obstacle course as soon as the weather gets better."

Keitaro smiled weakly, the guilt still present, but Natsumi's words helping to soothe it.

Suddenly, Hunter sneezed. 

They turned to the small blonde, who was rubbing his nose with his sleeve, his shoulders shaking a bit. 

"Hunter? Are you alright?" Keitaro asked, giving him a concerned look. 

Hunter nodded in return, giving him a smile, "I-I'm fine. My nose is just a bit runny, that's all…"

Natsumi gasped, scrambling to his feet, "Oh, dear! We need to take a bath as soon as possible! We'll all get sick if we dry out here!"

Natsumi pulled Hunter to his feet, concerned for the small scout for already showing signs of getting a cold. 

Wanting to be courteous, Keitaro stood up to move to his bed, "Y-You guys can go first, I can wait."

Natsumi rose a brow, "Hmm? The bathroom is big enough to accommodate us all. We can all take a bath at the same time."

His heart skipped a beat. 

Keitaro slowly looked over his shoulder, his neck going slick with what he couldn't tell was rainwater or sweat. 

"Y-You mean… like… together?"

Natsumi nodded with a smile, "Of course! We can't let you stay out here with wet clothes any longer; you'll catch a cold!"

Keitaro felt his heart begin to hammer against his rib-cage, “Ummm…”

Yoichi gave him a skeptical glance, “What's the matter? Afraid I’m gonna attack you?”

Keitaro shook his head, trying to calm his racing heart. Hiro pursed his lips with confusion, “You’re gonna join us? You’re perfectly dry, Yoichi.”

Yoichi only snarled, crossing his arms, “You can’t tell me what to do! And besides, I haven’t taken a bath in three days.”

Natsumi gasped, looking at Yoichi with a repulsed stare, “That’s disgusting Yoichi! I take at least TWO baths a day to maintain my hygiene!”

While Natsumi and Yoichi went back and forth, Hiro skipped over to Keitaro, sensing his nervousness, “Keitaro, think of it like how we used to take baths together, but this time with more people!”

But it only succeeded in making Keitaro’s heart beat faster, beads of sweat forming on his neck, “Th-That doesn’t really help, Hiro…”

“Anyway, we need to take a shower now. I’ve already bought out some towels!”

Keitaro looked back at Natsumi, who was holding five towels and gesturing to the bathroom door, beckoning everyone inside. When everyone began to walk to the bathroom, taking a towel as they went, Keitaro sighed in defeat. 

“O… okay…” 

_ Be still my beating heart… _

As everyone filed into the bathroom, Keitaro tucked his towel close to his chest, his anxiety sky-rocketing. 

His cabin mates all talked casually as they disrobed, tossing their wet or dirty clothes into the hamper off in the corner. Keitaro took his uniform off slowly, not wanting to seem awkward by just standing there. He kept his eyes firmly on the ground, using every ounce of his brain-power  _ not _ to stare at ogle at the four behind him. 

“Let me go turn on the heater!” 

Natsumi walked into the shower room for a moment, fishing around with some switches. Once everyone was ready, they entered the shower room and picked a spot, turning on the water, welcoming the heat that came with it. 

Keitaro was last to strip, nervously removing his underwear once he knew everyone was in the shower room. He slowly shuffled through the locker room, taking a few deep breaths to try and regulate his palpitating heart. 

When he approached the doorway to the showers, he sucked in a breath, peering around the corner. 

He gasped. 

“Fwahh~ Nothin’ like a hot bath on a cold day! Thank goodness this place has a heater!” 

Keitaro was met with a sight that stirred the blood throughout his body, making his knees quake. 

Hiro was gushing about the heat of the water, taking the shower head he was in front of and letting the water cascade over his shoulders. Keitaro watched silently as the water ran down his back, dipping through each firm muscle of his back, down to his rear and onto the floor. 

Natsumi chuckled, “We usually open it during cold days like this! Summer weather can be quite unpredictable! The scoutmasters told me not to open it on a regular basis though.”

The bluenette took the bar of soap and rubbed it in-between his hands, letting the foam lather in his hands before rubbing it over his arms. Keitaro watched with silent glee as the soap slowly rolled over his well-built muscles, making his lower jaw quiver. 

“ _ Psst. _ Just between you and me, Torch-head, I always turn it on whenever I take a bath~” Yoichi whispered behind Natsumi’s back, giving Hiro a wink. He lifted a bucket of hot water and dumped it over him, allowing loose muck and grime to fall down into the drain. Lifting it made his muscles flex, and the water only added a gleam to his pecs and abs. 

“I HEARD THAT YOICHI! So  _ that's  _ why the camp’s electricity bill was way off the budget these past few months!” Natsumi turned to look at the larger scout, crossing his arms in a huff. 

Yoichi only scoffed, “Psh! What are  _ you _ gonna do about it?” 

He sighed in response. 

From his hiding spot, Keitaro’s entire frame was shaking. 

_Everyone’s really taking a bath together…_ _they really don’t mind seeing each other… naked_ … 

As Keitaro sat in silence having an internal crisis, Hiro had been observing Yoichi, his brows furrowed with concentration. 

“Hey, I just noticed… how come you’re so full of muscles, Yoichi?” 

Natsumi turned to Yoichi, looking the scout up and down. He hummed, “Oh… it makes me wonder as well. I never see you work out or lift weights at all.”

Yoichi grinned, stretching his torso out with pride, gesturing to his abs, “Heh! It’s all  _ natural _ -” He stuck out a leg, “- _ This _ is what you get keep moving around rather then staying in the cabin all day doing lame and boring stuff!”

Hunter sighed sadly, “I wish I had a bigger body too…”

Keitaro glanced over at Hunter, watching the small scout bathe. His back was slim and slender, but widened when it reached his waist. He ran his hands over his sides, almost defining the wideness of his hips and butt. His skin looked smooth and plush, like a frail doll. 

Natsumi shook his head, smiling at him, “I don't think it would suit you, Hunter. You already look adorable in your current shape!”

Hunter blushed gently, “A-Adorable?”

Hiro huffed, flexing his arms, “Hmph! I have muscles too! See? See?! Me and Keitaro almost have the same build!”

While everyone was chuckling at Hiro’s display of his arms, Keitaro’s face had erupted into a dark red and his knees were quaking, ready to give way at any moment. 

_ HOW CAN THEY BE SO CASUAL ABOUT THIS?!?! _

To his horror, Hunter looked over his shoulder and glanced right at him, a hum escaping his lips, “Speaking of Keitaro, he’s right over there.”

They all turned to him, giving him worried glances. 

“Oh, Keitaro? Why are you just standing over there?” Natsumi asked, raising a brow. 

Keitaro’s throat tightened, “I… u-uhh…”

Natsumi chuckled, smiling sympathetically, “Aww, he’s shy~”

Hiro rose a brow, pulling out another stool and placing it next to him, patting it, “Eh? Come over here, Keitaro! I’ll wash your back! You’re not shy with me are you?”

Finally caught and with nowhere to go, Keitaro shyly shuffled into the shower room. He sat down on the stool, trying to keep his eyes off of the bodies of his cabin mates. Hiro dumped a bucket of water over his head, making him jump at the sudden heat. 

As Hiro took a sponge and began scrubbing Keitaro’s back, he resumed the conversation they were having, “Say, Keitaro. We were just talking about who’s got the best bod here!”

_ Fuckfuckfuckfuck- _

“Don’t even bother asking! We all know I’ve got the best muscles around!” Yoichi exclaimed, flexing his arms to show off his biceps. 

“Shush, Wolfboy! Not everyone likes a bulky body like yours,” Hiro huffed, moving the sponge to Keitaro’s arms. 

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “That is true. Everyone has different preferences!”

Hunter looked away, his eyes falling dejectedly, “I don’t feel confident with this topic…”

Keitaro was about to say something before Hiro looked over his shoulder, smiling brightly, “What about you, Keitaro? What kind of body do you prefer?”

Keitaro felt every blood vessel in his body freeze. 

He slowly looked over his shoulder, his eyes falling on the bodies of his cabin mates. 

“Uhhh…”

His heart was pounding in his chest, his face flushing a dark red as his eyes ran across each of his mates. 

Hiro’s body was rather lean and firm, much like his own. His shoulders were wide, and he had a rather small waist. If he tried, Keitaro felt like his fingertips would meet should he wrap his hands around him. His stomach was more defined then his, Hiro’s wild persona and endless energy defining more muscle. 

Natsumi was rather tall, making his body look more slender than most. But he was rather well-built, with a defined torso and abs, while his arms and legs showed off the muscle gained from all the work he did. He could eclipse Keitaro’s entire frame if he wanted to…

Yoichi was anything but lean or slender. With thick muscles at every corner, Keitaro noticed the curve of every point in his body. From his pecs to his abs, large thighs, thick arms, and wide waist, Yoichi was big. His looks alone would terrify most, but to Keitaro, he only wanted to test how strong the muscles were.

Hunter was the exact opposite of Yoichi. Small, slim, and petite. His skin looked soft and even supple, like silk. He didn’t have much muscle in his torso or arms, but he widened out a bit towards his waist, making Keitaro’s mouth go dry when he saw the bounciness of his… rear end. 

What should he say? He didn’t have a preference! Never had. Never will!

“I… guess… I… d-don’t, really…”

Hiro rose a brow, “You don’t? Everyone has a body type they like above others!”

But Keitaro shook his head, straightening out his back to face his friends with a reddened face, “But I don’t, Hiro! All of your bodies look amazing to me! Whether you're lean and firm ,thick and muscular, slender but well-built, or slim and petite! I don’t care! You’re all beautiful!!!”

_ …Did I just say that out loud…? _

Keitaro immediately wanted to run out of the bathroom and hide under his bed. The looks his cabin mates were giving him said it all. They’re faces were as red as his.

“Awww… Keitaro! That’s really flattering for you to say!” Natsumi was first to speak, giving Keitaro a warm smile. Hunter nodded in agreement. 

“Yeah, I think it’s really amazing that you’re so open and accepting of any body type. It’s really encouraging.”

Hiro leaned on his hand, raising a brow at Yoichi, “See, Wolfboy? Keitaro likes  _ all _ types!”

Yoichi only rolled his eyes, “Whatever. He did still say he liked my type as well, so I still won that argument!”

Hiro frowned, about to retort back when Keitaro let out a long sigh, his head hung low. Natsumi looked down at him, shushing the two bickering, “A-Are you alright, Keitaro?”

Hunter leaned over as well, “He’s all red. Are you too hot in here?” 

Keitaro shook his head, clutching his arms, “I… I just can’t believe we’re all taking a bath together…” 

He looked down at his feet, face red with embarrassment. 

Natsumi laughed, moving his stool over to be closer to Keitaro, “You don’t have to be shy around us, Keitaro! You’re like a brother to us now! Just take a look at Yoichi, for example. He’s already shameless to show his…  _ thing _ in front of us!”

Natsumi pointed right at Yoichi’s… member. Keitaro tried not to look, but Yoichi chuckled, spreading his legs as if to show off. 

“Hey! I can swing my dick wherever I want to! We’re all guys here!” 

Keitaro gasped, the soap studs only  _ barely  _ covering Yoichi. 

He felt a twitch in-between his legs. 

“I can do the helicopter too! Look! Look!” Hiro jumped up and swung himself around, making Keitaro blush even harder. He felt like he could pass out!

Another twitch. 

“Pfft! Why is yours so small, Hiro?” Yoichi sniggered, crossing his arms smugly. Hiro only huffed, “Hey! It’s a lot bigger than you think! It just hasn’t woken up yet!”

But Yoichi only laughed, “Hahaha! That’s almost as small as Hunter’s!”

The blonde blushed darkly, his legs snapping shut, “E-Eh?! But N-Natsumi’s is longer than yours!” 

He felt himself stiffen. 

“That’s not fair! You guys are cheating!” Hiro whined, plopping back onto his stool. 

Natsumi chuckled, patting Keitaro’s back again, making him twitch, “See, Keitaro? Everyone’s really casual about this! I can show you mine too!”

“ _ WHA-AAAAA!?” _

Keitaro yelped in fright, slapping his hands over his eyes. The blood was leaving his face, and traveling to a place it shouldn’t be. 

“Keitaro?” Natsumi looked down at him with worry, holding out a hand.

He needed to hide!

“I THINK I’LL GO RINSE IN THE SHOWER NOW!!!”

Keitaro scrambled off his stool, nearly slipping on the wet floor. He shot to his feet and ran into one of the cubicles, hurriedly closing the curtain behind him. 

He heard their voices after he left, but his heart was hammering in his ears; he could barely hear anything, let alone think straight. 

_ It’s not that I was embarrassed taking a shower with everyone… it’s just that… _

Images flashed through his mind. 

_ I could see… everything from there… _

He bit his lip. 

_ And it made me feel so weird! _

He quickly turned on the shower-head, allowing the water to cascade down his back as he leaned his head against the wall. He took in deep breaths, trying to soothe his racing heart. 

He opened his eyes weakly, staring down with a flushed face at his now upright, throbbing member. 

_ “This is bad! REALLY bad!” _

Why had he sudden gotten erect!?

_ “I can’t be out there with THIS sticking out!” _

His jaw shook with fear, and his cheeks were warm with blood. 

_ “How can they talk to each other without feeling… WEIRD like this?!”  _

Keitaro saw flashes in his mind, the bodies of his cabin mates stuck in his head. He shook his head. 

_ “Not only that! Everyone’s completely naked too! I’m just a regular person! How can I handle all of that?!” _

He bit his lip, his member twitching in excitement. This wasn’t calming down anytime soon. He needed to get rid of it. 

_ “I should finish this quickly before they notice anything…” _

Keitaro’s frame shook, embarrassment coursing through his veins. He hardly ever did this to begin with. Now he was going to do this in a public place, with his friends behind a thin curtain!

He lifted his free hand, and grabbed the base of his dick. 

A low whine rumbled in his throat. He slowly began to pull on his member, pumping himself slowly. 

Pleasure was beginning to trickle up his spine. 

He clenched his teeth, his heart hammering against his chest. A bead of pre-cum was forming already, his mind racing with thought of his cabin mates. But not just them. 

But doing things  _ with _ them. 

From simple things as kissing, to touching, to making love. They all crossed his mind. 

Hiro. Hunter. Yoichi. Natsumi. 

...Taiga…

Keitaro’s knees quaked, and he picked up his speed, pumping himself quicker and quicker, eager for that sweet release. 

He felt a heat build at the base of his belly, course through his legs and run up his back. He bit his lips, trying to withhold moan after moan. 

_ “A-Almost th-there…” _

Pre-cum dripped and fell onto the floor below him. He was so close, he felt like he could burst at any moment. 

He sucked in a breath, and with one final pull, pleasure overtook his senses, and he released his load over the bathroom walls. 

_ “AHH!” _

He was unable to hold back the cry of pleasure. He felt the sticky, hot cum cover his chest. He bit the inside of his cheek, trying to control his voice as he rode out his orgasm. 

After a few moments of euphoria, he let his member go, weakly crumbling to his knees. 

He looked down at the mess he made, the blush ever present over his cheeks. 

_ “This is really embarrassing… doing this in a place like this… I better clean up before they-” _

“Keitaro! Are you done yet?”

The very marrow of his bones froze. 

“You’re really taking your time in there!” 

Hiro was calling out to him, his voice holding a hint of concern. 

Keitaro wanted to say something, but his voice had died in his throat. What should he say? What should he do!? He didn’t know!

“Just follow us into the mess hall once you’re done in there, okay?”

They were leaving. He hadn’t realized how long he took. But wanting to secure solitude to clean himself up, he mustered up his courage and responded. 

“Y-Yes, I’ll catch up!” 

Keitaro sighed deeply, falling onto his rear in relief as he listened to his cabin leave the bathroom, talking amongst themselves. 

He leaned against the wall, looking down at the mess he made with shame, his lip quivering. 

_ For some reason… when I was doing that… they were all on my mind… _

He took in a shaky breath. 

_ I don’t know why, but I can’t help but think about… ALL of them that way… _

_ … _

_ What's wrong with me? _

* * *

Keitaro opened the door to the mess hall, peering in nervously. He looked around for his friends, wanting to keep attention off of him. When he saw them sitting at a table towards the corner, he stepped into the room fully, shuffling through the crowd. 

As he got closer to the table, he dusted off his shirt and plastered on his best smile. 

“Hello, everyone!” 

Natsumi looked over his shoulder, “Oh! There you are, Keitaro!”

Hiro scooted over, patting the spot next to him, allowing Keitaro to sit down, “What took you so long? We were waiting for you!”

Keitaro sucked in a nervous breath, racking his brain for a reasonable excuse.

“Hah! I bet he was doing naughty stuff in the shower!” Yoichi mused, leaning on his arm. 

Keitaro swore his heart stopped. He whirled towards Yoichi, his arms waving frantically in the air, “No, no! I-I wasn’t!”

Hiro rose a brow, “Hmm… you’ve been acting weird this morning…”

The brunette tried to say something, but his voice was caught in his throat. He wasn’t making this any easier on himself. Hunter leaned across the table, his small brows furrowed with worry. 

“Is something on your mind, Keitaro?” He asked, making Keitaro shiver. 

What should he say!? Yoichi had hit the nail right on the head within ten seconds of him sitting down! His heart was pounding a million miles a minute. 

“I… I was thinking about… ummmm…”

His jaw snapped shut. 

Hiro waved his hand, “About…?”

"Th-The storm! Outside… it was so nice last night, it got me thinking about how quickly it turned for the worst… you know?"

They all gave him awkward stares.

"Are you sure you're alright, Keitaro?" Hiro asked, lifting a hand and placing it against Keitaro's forehead. 

The brunette nodded, "Y-Yeah, I'm just really hungry… all of the hullabaloo earlier really drained me…"

Natsumi nodded, pushing a plate of food towards him, "Then eat some lunch! Don't want your energy to be gone when we start our activity later."

Keitaro smiled weakly, picking up his fork and digging in. 

Thankfully, his friends dropped the earlier topic, and began talking about mediocre things. 

He mentally sighed with relief.

_ That was TOO close! For a second there, I though I was a goner! It would be embarrassing if they found out what I did… _

Keitaro ate his lunch in silence, trying to piece his mind back together. He didn't want to seem out of it for too long. He listened to his friends talk, only inputting every once in a while. 

Most of the scouts were talking about what they would be doing. With the weather suddenly changing on them. And Keitaro remembered a comment Yoichi made before he stormed off, something about the obstacle course activity ending in the same way it did last time. 

Thirty minutes passed as they ate, Keitaro not saying much. After they all had finished, Hiro turned around on the bench, leaning back against the table to stretch his stomach out. 

“Fwahhh~! I’m so full! Now I’m feeling really sleepy…”

“Hiro, you might get nightmares if you sleep right after you eat,” Natsumi gathered their trays, piling them up in front of him. He stood up and went to toss their garbage, and Yoichi scoffed at his comment. 

“Psh. I do that all the time! Nightmares don’t scare me.”

They waited for Natsumi to come back, thanking them for taking their trays. Hunter then turned around, seeing Yoshi, Yuri, and Aiden walk into the mess hall. 

“Guys! The scoutmaster’s are here!” He called, everyone turned around to see the three come in, drawing the attention of all the scouts. Yoshi cleared his throat. 

“Attention scouts! Due to unforeseen weather conditions, we were forced to cancel out outdoor activities today for everyone’s safety,” He announced, Aiden letting out a hefty sigh to his side. 

“It’s too bad we didn’t get to use that course… we stayed up all night to get it done in time for today…” He whined, swinging his leg back and forth. 

Yuri moved herself between them, patting their shoulders reassuringly, “There, there, two…”

Yoshi smiled, patting Yuri’s hand. He turned back to the scouts, widening his smile, “But fear not! For we, your diligent scoutmasters, have decided to let you all have indoor activities instead! Don’t worry, we’ll still have plenty of fun! I have tons of indoor activities for you all to enjoy! Let’s turn those friends upside down! Who’s up for some arts and crafts?” 

While some of the scouts clapped at the sound of indoor activities, Yoichi let out a loud groan, slapping his hands over his face and pulling at his cheeks.

“Oh. My. God. This day couldn’t get any worse!” 

**_BOOM._ **

**_WHIIIIIRRrrrrrr_ **

Thunder ruptured overhead, and the lights in the mess hall flickered and exploded. 

And everything went dark. 

Many scouts shouted in fright, jumping towards each other. Keitaro felt Hiro and Hunter both cling to his arms. 

“W-What…?!” Keitaro looked around, squinting as his eyes attempted to adjust to the sudden change in brightness.

Natsumi didn’t seem alarmed. He instead, let out a defeated groan, letting his head fall onto the table, “You just  _ had _ to say it, Yoichi…” 

At the end of the hall, Yuri grabbed onto the arms of Yoshi and Aiden, blinking rapidly, “Oh no… a power outage?”

Aiden reached out and placed his hand on Yoshi’s shoulder, “Did we forget to pay the bills again?”

Yoshi shook his head, “No, I’m pretty sure that’s not the case. Lighting probably hit one of the circuits outside… do you mind checking it out for us, Aiden?” 

The man nodded, giving Yoshi a determined smile, “Sure thing!” 

He let go of Yoshi, turning to leave the mess hall. 

“Oh, Aiden, one more thing!” 

Aiden turned around at the sound of Yoshi’s voice, his brows raised, “Yes, Yoshi?”

Yoshi sighed, giving him a warm smile, “Be careful, alright?”

Aiden’s face flushed gently, and he returned the smile, “You don’t have to tell me that!” 

When he left the mess hall, Yoshi dropped his smile, his shoulders hanging in defeat. Yuri turned to him, a worried look on her face, “What should we do now, Yoshi?”

He shook his head, “I don’t know… all of my plans today are ruined… I can’t even think straight anymore. Maybe your dad was right… maybe I’m no good at this job at all…”

Yuri gasped, grabbing his arm and shaking it, “Come on! Don’t say that! The campers can hear you! It’s not your fault the weather’s so awful today.”

He looked down at his feet. Yuri smiled. 

“How about we just call it a day and rest up for now? I’m sure this storm won’t last forever!”

Yoshi sighed, giving her a weak smile in return, “I guess you’re right…” He cleared his throat, “Okay, everyone! I’m sorry to say this, but we’ll have to postpone all activities until the power comes back! Please head back to your cabins for the rest of the day!”

After his command, Natsumi stood up, clapping his hands together, “Alright, everyone! Let’s go!”

As the scouts all began to file out, Yoshi sat down on one of the tables, “Am I having the worst luck or what?”

Yuri shook her head, “Come on! Cheer up, big guy!”

Keitaro looked at Yoshi with a saddened stare, feeling bad for his scoutmaster. When they left the mess hall, they all rushed back to their cabin to avoid the rain. 

* * *

_ “Ugghhhh… _ I’m soooo… boooooored!”

Many hours had passed. The lights were off, the power to the entire camp going out. They had all changed into their pajamas, not seeing a point to stay in their uniforms. 

Yoichi was hanging off his bed, his arms draped across the floor as he whined.

Natsumi was sitting on the floor next to him, giving him a small smile, “Come on, Yoichi! There are plenty of things we can do before we sleep!”

Yoichi groaned, rolling across his bed, “I really hate when the weather’s like this! I have no choice but to be stuck here! In this stupid, boring, damp room!”

Keitaro rubbed his neck, stretching out his legs from his spot on the floor, “Hmm… I like how the rain sounds. It’s relaxing to me. Too bad our activities got cancelled again, though.”

Hiro smiled, clapping his hands from his bed, “Cheer up, everyone! Since we’ve all still got some energy, we should do something interesting!”

Yoichi huffed, “Like what?”

Keitaro hummed, looking up at the ceiling, “Ummm… how about we tell spooky stories to each other? My sister and I do that a lot whenever we have a storm.”

Hiro smiled, moving off his head and onto the floor, “Oh! That’s a good idea, Keitaro!”

Yoichi snickered, moving onto the floor, “Psh! Nothing can scare me!”

Hunter grabbed his blanket off his bed, wrapping it around himself as he settled onto the floor, the five now forming a circle in the middle of the floor, “A… Are you guys sure about this…?”

Natsumi clapped his hands, reaching under his bed and pulling out a flashlight, flickering it on and off, “Sounds fun! I know a couple of scary stories! I’ll go first!” 

Yoichi leaned on his knees, “Yeah! This is gonna be exciting!”

Keitaro smiled, laying down on this stomach. Natsumi turned on the flashlight, placing it under his head to shine the light on his face. 

He cleared his throat. 

“Once upon a time, there was a young boy named Toshu. Toshu was a young and carefree boy. He liked to play outside and play video games! Then one day… one dreadful day…”

“Oh no…” Keitaro whispered, tucking his arms under him.

“He went back home… and his mother called his name… Toshuu… Toshuuu… chills ran down to his spine as he saw his mother holding a…”

_ Knife? Machete? Axe? Oh I know where this is going! _

“FAILED REPORT CARD!”

Silence. 

“A… what?”

Yoichi erupted with laughter, slapping the floor repeatedly as he rolled with hysterics, “Oh my god, Natsumi! That was SO LAME!!!”

Natsumi huffed, dropping the flashlight and crossing his arms, “Hey! Nothing is scarier than failing a test which eventually leads you to an unemployed future! Just thinking about it gives me the chills…”

Yoichi sighed, allowing his laughter to subside before he leaned on his hands, “I am disappointed in myself for even letting you speak!”

Natsumi ignored him, turning to Keitaro and smiling, “Did you like it, Keitaro?”

The brunette smiled, nodding, “Umm… it was okay, I guess?”

Despite it not actually being scary, Keitaro encouraged him, returning his smile. While everyone calmed down from the laughter of his story, Hiro raised his hand. 

“Ooh! My turn, my turn! I know this creepy story that will surely knock all your socks off!”

Yoichi snorted, “You better not tell us another story about a failed report card.”

Hiro shook his head, picking up the flashlight and laying down on his stomach, beckoning everyone else to join him, “I swear! This one’s good!”

Everyone laid down around him, scooting closer to each other. Keitaro braced himself for the worst. Hiro told good horror stories, it was one of his favorite genres for… anything. Movies, shows, games, comics, anything. 

“So… it goes like this…”

Hiro flicked on the light and shone it under his chin, smiling viciously. 

_ “One quiet night, in a camp just like this… two best friends, Ichiru and Masaru, went out past their bedtime to check out an abandoned cabin down by the lake…” _

Keitaro swallowed, already hating how it mirrored their own camp. It also had a large, abandoned cabin by the lake.

_ “It was rumored that many of the campers who once stayed there… vanished mysteriously… the two reached the front door only to find out it was locked. Masaru suggested that it was a bad idea and insisted that they should just go back…” _

They all tucked closer to each other. 

_ “But then, Ichiru found a cellar door in the backyard… Ichiru was so curious that he dragged Masaru down to the basement. It was cold and dark inside… and all they had was a dim flashlight to light up their path.” _

Hiro flickered his own for emphasis.

_ “As they slowly walked further, they suddenly heard a creaking sound… Ichiru pointed his flashlight towards the source of the sound, revealing a slightly open door just a few steps away from them.” _

Hunter scooted towards Yoichi, tucking into his side. 

_ “Masaru was shaking in fear as he begged Ichiru to turn back… Ichiru was still up for it, so he pushed that door completely open…” _

Natsumi reached out and grabbed Keitaro’s wrist.

_ “Both of their skin turned pale… and their bodies went numb with fear… Ichiru dropped his flashlight when he saw…” _

Silence…

_ “THE HEADLESS CAMPERS MURDERED BY THEIR SCOUTMASTER!” _

**_BOOM!_ **

“AHHHHHHHHH!!!!”

Hiro’s sudden shout accompanied with a clap of thunder made all of them scream. Hunter buried himself under his blanket and tucked himself under Yoichi, who latched onto the small blonde in return. Keitaro jumped into Natsumi’s side, the tall scout hugging Keitaro back in fear. 

Hiro, burst out laughing. 

“AHAHAHA! I got you good!” 

Yoichi quickly jumped off Hunter, sitting up and crossing his arms, “Hmph! I wasn’t scared at all!” 

Hunter sat up, his blanket falling to his shoulders, “You screamed like a little girl and hugged me, Yoichi.”

The violette looked at him with a surprised stare, his eyes darting around embarrassingly, “W-What?! Did not!”

Hunter cocked a brow, giving him a little smirk. Keitaro chuckled weakly, giving his friends a weak smile, “Don’t worry, it was just a story… none of it was real… right?”

Natsumi nodded, tightening his grip on Keitaro, “I-I’m sure it was just made up by Hiro…”

But the amber-eyed boy snickered, “Oh, it’s as real as it gets! Speaking of which, there’s a cabin beyond that lake nearby the campgrounds, right? You never know… Scoutmaster Yoshi might not be who you think he is…”

Natsumi shook his head fearfully, “D-Don’t say that, Hiro! Scoutmaster Yoshi is a dependable and honorable man! I’m sure… he won’t… slaughter us all…”

Keitaro whimpered in fright, covering his eyes with his hands. Natsumi was holding him like a toddler held a teddy bear, and he probably hadn’t noticed. Not that Keitaro minded in any way. 

But after Hiro’s comment and Natsumi’s fearful retort, Keitaro pictured Yoshi; their kind, strong, passionate scoutmaster, along with the cabin at the lake. Keitaro shivered as he imagined Yoshi amongst a sea of headless bodies, licking a bloodied knife with a murderous smile on his face. 

“Now I’m kinda scared of Scoutmaster Yoshi…” He whispered. 

While a few of his friends giggled at his comment, they hadn’t noticed the shadow pass by one of their windows. 

Not until the door to their cabin jiggled. 

A slam. 

“Did anyone hear that?” Hiro jumped, suddenly on his hands and knees, facing the door.

Hunter tightened the blanket around himself, scooting back into Yoichi, “W-What was that…?”

Keitaro felt every muscle in his body freeze in fright. Who was at their door? Natsumi’s grip tightened on him, the tall scout beginning to shake in fear. 

Keitaro shook his head, “L-Let’s calm down everyone! Take a few deep breaths, and let’s think about this for a moment. W-We’re probably just jumpy from the ghost story, okay? It wasn’t real…”

Hunter shook his head, suddenly shooting across the space on the floor and into Keitaro and Natsumi, “I-I’ve actually read about a story similar to H-Hiro’s…”

Keitaro grabbed onto Hunter fearfully, squeezing the small blonde. 

“A-And… I can confirm that it was real… I read it in a newspaper a few years ago…”

Yoichi had crawled over to them and burrowed in-between Natsumi and Keitaro. 

“T-The whole camp was slaughtered by a scoutmaster!”

“H-Hunter! That isn’t really helping our situation!” Natsumi snapped, hiding his face in Keitaro’s shoulder. 

Hiro’s jaw dropped, whirling around to face them, “W-What?! You can’t be serious! I seriously just made it all up!”

A series of footsteps echoed. The door shook again. 

Hiro yelped and dove into Yoichi, latching onto the large scout. Keitaro shook with fear, now buried in the embrace of his terrified cabin-mates, “What was that!? I-I hear footsteps!”

Yoichi sniffed the air a few times, but only recoiled with fear, “I can smell someone outside! B-But… I can’t tell who it is!”

Natsumi whirled towards Hiro, “H-Hiro, this isn’t funny anymore… drop the act!” 

But the smaller scout shook his head violently, now completely in Yoichi’s lap and buried between him and Keitaro, “It’s not me, I swear!” 

Hunter shook under his blanket, “Can s-someone g-go check it out?”

“Mr. Perfect, you’re in charge, right?! Go check it out!” Yoichi shouted, pointed at the door; but Natsumi shook his head wildly, “H-Hey! I’m not sure I want to!” 

The door swung open with a bang. 

“What’s going on here!? I heard screamin-”

“AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!”

The door was ripped open to reveal Goro standing in the doorway, a look of concern on his face. However, his sudden entrance made everyone reel back, screaming in fright while curling into each other for protection. 

“W-What the…?!” Goro stepped back when they screamed at him, bewilderment on his face. 

“S-Sir Goro!” Natsumi cried, relief washing over all of them.

The man huffed irritably, “What’s the matter with all of you? You all look like you’ve seen a ghost!” 

Natsumi sat up to the best of his ability, everyone still glued to him, “I apologize, Sir Goro… we were just telling scary stories and…” 

Goro narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms with anger, “Scary stories, huh? And who is responsible for this?” 

They all shrunk back.

Keitaro fearfully cleared his throat, “It was my idea… sir.”

Goro shook his head in disappointment, “You thought that it was a great idea to tell those kinds of stories at this time of night? In  _ this _ weather condition no less? What if the other scouts thought that someone got hurt in here?!”

As his voice rose, Keitaro curled back with shame, “I… it was all just for fun, sir…” 

Goro remained silent. 

Natsumi tightened his grip on Keitaro, puffing out his chest, “I promise we weren’t doing anything bad, sir.”

Keitaro looked up at him in shock.

“We were just trying to have fun since we didn’t have any activities today…” Hunter added, wrapping himself from his blanket.

Yoichi huffed, nodding in agreement, “Yeah, and it was better than measly arts and crafts, too.”

Hiro sat up a bit, “Keitaro was just trying to have a fun time with everyone!”

Goro stared at them silently, pondering to himself. After a pregnant pause, he huffed to himself. 

“Hmph. Very well then… just don’t scream like that again! I don’t want any more false alarms! And please, go to bed already! It’s late!”

“Y-Yes, sir!” Keitaro nodded, responding for his friends.

He then walked out without another word, closing the door behind him. They listened for his footsteps, and once he was away from the cabin, the all let out a collective sigh, sinking down into the floor like a giant puddle.

“Whew, that takes care of that,” Hiro mused, taking breaths to calm himself. 

Keitaro smiled, snuggling into the pile they were in, “Thanks… everyone.” 

Yoichi smirked, reaching over to ruffle Keitaro’s hair, “Don’t worry, we got your back.”

Hunter smiled, casting his blanket over Keitaro, “Sir Goro is really scary…” 

Hiro nodded in agreement, sliding out of Yoichi’s lap, “Right? He’s nothing like his daughter!”

The comment made Natsumi shush him, pressing his fingers to Hiro’s lips, “Shh… Hiro, be quiet! Sir Goro might hear you!”

Hiro smiled against Natsumi’s hand.

The blunette sighed, “I don’t know why he’s still in Camp Buddy, however, He usually just visits for a day and then leaves…”

He sighed once more, “Anyway, we should all go to sleep before he finds out we’re still awake…”

Hiro stood up, letting his bones crack, “Yup! That’s enough stories for one night.”

Keitaro nodded, slowly untangling himself and rising to his feet, “Let’s head to bed.”

They all climbed to their feet, shuffling across the room to their respective beds. Keitaro sat down on his bed, fluffing his pillow a bit. Another clap of thunder sounded outside, making him jump a little. But when he looked over at his friends, he smiled warmly, a sense of calm washing over him. 

“Good night, boys…”

He sunk into his bed, draping his blanket over him. A warm blush covered his cheeks as the events of the day played over in his head. 

He was really glad they told that story. 

Because of it, he got to experience the warmth of being surrounded by his friends; their breaths and soft heartbeats all around him. It made his heart beat with affection. 

If only Taiga had been there… it would’ve been perfect. 

He shook his head, slamming his face into the pillow with embarrassment. 

Man he needed sleep... 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhhh~ another day done!
> 
> One more and we hit the big Day 8
> 
> Im so excitedddd
> 
> Anyway, I hope you guys liked day 6. I was kinda relieved to be writing a shorter chapter this time around, with day six being as short as it was. Day seven might be even shorter, with only three events that happen on the day. 
> 
> I loved writing this day for the shower scene. I was S U P E R tempted to name the chapter Day 6: Gay Panic. I'm not even joking XD. I hope I did Keitaro's little, ~moment~ justice. Boy can't handle all this boy. Too much boy. Cant do it. Not today. 
> 
> And he's not only fantasizing about his dear ol'cabin mates, but Taiga keeps slipping into his mind. Hehehehehe.....
> 
> The fanservice scene we get on day seven? Ohhhhh I got plans for that.... I think ya'll are gonna like it!
> 
> Well, it's getting late for me, so imma head to bed! Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! For updates on CB: Sleepsong (and other cb shenanigans), check me out on Twitter @TiraminaFW
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!  
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	8. Day 7: Confessions Under Starlight

The sun was hidden by a thick layer of clouds. Rain gently pelted the window from outside, the thumping acting as a lullaby to the ones sleeping within. The warmth of the summer and the heavy rain outside made the moisture in the higher air. 

Keitaro had long since kicked his blanket off, the humidity making his skin moist with sweat and condensation. He twisted and turned in his sleep, snoring softly as he dreamed. 

The clock by his bedside ticked, minutes away from striking eleven. 

Keitaro mumbled in his sleep, curling into himself as his mind began to swirl with images of his cabin-mates. 

Across the room, a yawn was heard. 

Yoichi sat up, groggily rubbing his eyes free of sleep. He let out another yawn, stretching his back out and letting it pop a few times. The blanket slipped off of him, sweat running down his sides. 

“Man… it’s so fucking hot in here…” He mumbled, throwing his legs over the side of his bed. 

The door to the cabin opened, and he turned around to see Natsumi and Hiro walk in. Natsumi was drenched with rainwater, and Hiro was pulling on his shirt as if it was stuck to him. 

“Mannn… it’s so hot in the kitchen right now! We had to use a fire to cook breakfast and even lunch cause of the power outage…” Hiro whined, immediately ripping off his shirt. Natsumi chuckled, taking his shoes off, “Yeah. It’s actually kind of cool to me right now, but I’ve been out in the rain moving the plants. We don’t want them getting too much water and dying on us!”

Hiro nodded in agreement, dropping his sweaty shirt into the hamper. 

From the left of the door, Hunter peered out from behind the wall, shushing all of them loudly. 

The three turned to him, his sudden appearance not scaring them, but his act to silence them startling. 

“What? Why are you shushing us Twinke-”

_“SHHH! Guys! Keitaro!”_

Hunter hissed another command at Yoichi, pointing to Keitaro, who was still asleep in his bed. 

They all immediately stopped talking, unaware that Keitaro was there, much less still asleep. Yoichi shook his head, “ _How is he still asleep? It’s near noon, and hot as fuck!”_

Hiro let out a soft chuckled, moving over to his bed to change into a new pair of clothes, answering Yoichi, _“That’s Keitaro for ya! I swear, the world could end and that boy would sleep right through it!”_

Hunter stepped out of the bathroom and walked over to his bed, still in his pajamas. Natsumi was also working to change into his own sleeping clothes, eager to get the wet clothes off of him. 

_“We don’t have an activity today, so it’s okay. We can let him sleep,”_ Natsumi whispered, smiling down at the brunette. 

Keitaro turned in his sleep, sighing gently. 

“Mmmmhh…”

Hunter giggled, cooing at the sight, “ _Awww… he’s dreaming!”_

Yoichi snickered, pulling his shirt over his head, _“Hehe, probably dreamin’ about frogs or something like that!”_

Keitaro mumbled again. 

“Hmm… b… boys…”

A hush fell over the room. 

They all turned to Keitaro simultaneously, looks of bewilderment on their faces. Hiro leaned a bit closer, _“What did he say?”_

Hunter climbed off his head, slowly crawling over to the side of Keitaro’s bed, _“I think he said… boys?”_

Yoichi snorted, _“Oh my god is he having a wet dream or something!?”_

Another hum. 

“I don’t wanna… choose… between my boys…”

Hearts began to pick up in pace. 

Natsumi slowly walked over, a brow raised in curiosity, _“Choose between his… what? Boys? Who are they?”_

Suddenly, Keitaro turned onto his side, hands pulling on his clothes due to the heat in the room. His stomach and back were now exposed, sweat slowly sliding across his skin. His legs were crossed, and his arms laid under his head, providing extra cushioning. His hair was damp with sweat, sticking to his forehead. A heavy blush dusted his cheeks as he smiled in his sleep, a small groan rumbling at the base of his throat. 

They all looked over his twisting figure with dry throats. 

“...my boys… my cabin… don’t wanna choose…”

A gasp sounded off in unison. 

He was talking about them! His _cabin_! 

Hiro slowly crawled over to the base of Keitaro’s bed, peering over the foot-board, _“We’re his… b-boys…?!”_

“Who said I had to choose… tell’em to fuck off…”

Yoichi snorted, a blush erupting on his face, _“Woah! Never thought he’d swear like that!”_

Natsumi chuckled, rubbing his neck, _“Wh-What should we do? We shouldn’t be spying on him but… he’s dreaming about us… I think… sooo…”_

“Whazit??”

Suddenly, Keitaro shot up, stirred from his slumber. The four all jumped in fright and scattered like mice, tripping over each other as they all ran out of the room. 

Keitaro let out another yawn, his eyes finally fluttering open. He scratched his side, rubbing his eyes groggily, “Hmmm… what time is it?”

He turned to his clock, watching the digital number turn and display, eleven-sixteen. 

His eyes widened, “What?! It’s already eleven!? It’s really late! How come no one woke me up?!”

He stood up from his bed, looking around at the empty cabin. He rubbed his neck, “Where is everyone anyway? I hope they didn’t start an activity without me… I guess they’re not here this morning… maybe I should…”

His stomach growled. 

“Man I’m hungry… maybe they all already went over to the mess hall to get something to eat? I guess there’s no point in lazing around anymore. I’ll just have to get dressed and find out for myself…”

Keitaro moved into the bathroom, quickly changing into his uniform. He took a towel and gently dried himself from the sweat of the morning heat. 

He slipped on his shoes and skipped out of the bathroom, leaving the cabin quickly to find his cabin-mates and get some breakfast. 

When the door to the cabin closed, from one of the bathroom stalls, the other four residents sighed in relief.

* * *

Keitaro entered the mess hall, shaking his clothes a bit to free them of the rainwater. He quickly scanned the room, scanning each table for his friends. The mess hall was relatively empty, most of the campers still in their cabins. He held a little hope that his friends would be among them, but felt a pang of sadness when he didn’t see them. 

“Looks like the others aren't here either. Guess I’ll be having breakfast by myself today.”

Keitaro walked across the room, walking up to the counter. He picked up a tray, looking over the selections of food Aiden had made that day. 

“Let’s see… what should I get…?”

As he began to load his plate up with food, he heard a few whispers behind him. The voices sounded worried and frightened, and it made him look over his shoulder with concern. 

“Oh, dear… what’s taking him so long…?” 

“If I remember correctly, I saw him completely preoccupied with some sort of book.”

Keitaro turned around to act as if he wasn’t listening. Eduard and Lee were sitting at a table near him, huddled close to each other fearfully. For the first time since he’s gotten here, Taiga wasn’t with them. He began to pour himself a drink, focusing his attention on their conversation. 

“We can’t be here without him! What if someone suddenly attacks us?! There is NO way my hair is getting ruined today!” 

Eduard was wailing with fright, and Lee responded with a calmer tone, “We’ve been instructed to patiently wait here for him. Based on my estimate, he will arrive here in thirteen minutes!”

Keitaro looked over his shoulder, facing them fully. Lee was gently patting Eduard’s arm as if trying to calm him. 

He looked on with worry, their body language, and hushed tones concerning him. 

_Eduard and Lee. They look troubled. Should I go ask them what’s wrong? Maybe they need some help…_

Knowing Taiga wasn’t with them helped him muster up more courage to approach the two. He hadn’t gotten a chance to speak with them much and was curious about what kind of people they were, outside of being Taiga’s lackeys. Taking his tray and plastering on his best smile, he left the counter and skipped over to them. 

“Hello, Eduard. Hello, Lee.”

The two looked up in response to their names. Eduard scoffed, rolling his eyes at Keitaro’s presence, “Ugh… it’s you…”

Lee, however, began to panic. He squeezed Eduard’s arm, shaking him slightly, “E-Eduard…! What do we do!?”

Eduard turned to him with an uncertain look, throwing his arms up, “Why are you asking me?! You’re the smart one!”

Lee took in a deep breath, turning to Keitaro and puffing out his chest weakly, “Get away from us, you… you… brown… haired… p-person!”

Keitaro titled his head, a feeling of sympathy for the two. Eduard groaned, facepalming. 

“Lee, that’s totally not an insult! Ugh. And you-” He looked up to face Keitaro, “-What do you want from us? If you’re here to cause trouble, I _will_ scream!” 

Keitaro shook his head, “W-Well… I noticed that you two looked troubled… so I just wanted to ask if you two need any help?”

Eduard scoffed, curling his lip back and shaking his hands, “Yuck! No way! We don’t need any help from you!”

Keitaro winced, feeling a bit dejected, “Oh… okay… I was just concerned. You two looked quite worried over something…”

He wanted to help them, maybe be friends, but it looked like it wasn’t going to happen. He had a hope that if Taiga wasn’t with them, they’d be easier to approach. 

“Ugh. What are you talking about? We’re doing perfectly fine here.” Eduard leaned on the table, waving him away. Lee nodded in unison. 

“Yeah! It’s not like we were worried that Taiga is not here yet! And we’re definitely not curious about that written log he’s hiding from us!”

Eduard closed his eyes. He let out a defeated sigh, and pinched the bridge of his nose, “Lee! You gave it away!” 

Keitaro pursed his lips, “Writing log? You mean… like a journal?”

He expected them to shoo him away again. But Eduard looked up at him, his face twisting into one of… curiosity? 

“Is that what it’s called? What’s up with that book anyway? He never tells us anything about it!” 

Eduard huffed, leaning his head on his hand. Lee nodded, lacing his fingers together in thought, “He seems to be protective of it as well. Remember that one time we accidentally grabbed that book and put it on the bookshelf?”

Eduard nodded with sadness, “Yeah… he thought we were stealing it and started throwing the other books at our heads!”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, “That sounds harsh… he should learn how to control his temper.”

Eduard nodded in agreement, “Taiga _does_ have some anger issues…”

He froze, eyes wide in shock at his own words. He snarled at Keitaro suddenly, “B-But that’s none of your business! You don’t know Taiga like we do…”

Keitaro smiled warmly. 

Got’em. 

“That’s why I’d like to know more about you guys! I honestly wanna be friends with you.”

Eduard crossed his arms with an indignant huff, “Hmph! Taiga is the only true friend we have!”

Lee nodded, “Maybe Keitaro just wants to gather some information about us… just to strike when we least expect!” 

Keitaro sighed, shaking his head, “N-No! I swear! I really just want to get along with you three…”

Eduard cocked a brow with doubt, “That is _obviously_ a lie. Everyone here in camp hates us. Almost as if we like, did something wrong to them. What makes YOU any different?”

Lee pounded his small fists on the table, glaring at Keitaro, “Taiga told us that you’re just pretending to be nice just to be liked by everyone! How sycophantic! There’s no one else we can trust but Taiga!”

Despite not understanding that last word Lee used, Keitaro slowly approached the table, placing his tray down, “You both look up to Taiga so much…”

A glimmer of hope sparked in his heart. 

Eduard smiled fondly, nodding in agreement, “Of course! We have _plenty_ of reasons to admire him! Personally, I like how strong and manly he is! During my first days here in Camp Buddy, I was getting picked on just because I liked pretty things. I don’t know why but everyone was so annoyed by the way I walk and talk. I mean, what’s wrong with being so fabulous?!”

Eduard twirled his hair a bit, his smile widening, “That was when he came to my rescue and beat up the guys who were bullying me! Talk about ‘Prince Charming’, right?”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, “Taiga did that…?” 

He had finally sat down, now across from the two. 

Lee nodded in agreement, “I too was being mocked by the other campers. Apparently, they don’t appreciate my polymath-level intellect. They couldn’t accept how I was able to logically overthrow their opinions and arguments.”

He fixed his glasses, “One time, Taiga overheard them saying horrible things about me so he threatened those imbeciles-” He smiled, “-Thanks to Taiga, no one ever dared to mock me again!”

Keitaro looked down at his food, feeling bad for the two having received such awful treatment. Everyone he’d met so far in this camp was so welcoming and friendly; what happened last year? 

“I feel bad that you two had to experience that kind of treatment…”

Eduard nodded, looking up at Keitaro with a face full of hurt, “That’s why we don’t get how everything comes so easy to you! Everyone loved you from the first day! It’s so unfair!”

Lee nodded, “We’ll never abandon Taiga. He’s the only one who accepted us!”

Keitaro took in a deep breath. Now he understood. Eduard, Lee, even Taiga. They were angry at the events of last year, and his acceptance into the camp. He felt like the book was finally turning its pages like he was getting the answers he needed. All he needed now was the details of the event, and maybe, just maybe, he could help them overcome this. 

He sighed, and smiled, “Look, maybe we just got off on the wrong foot… I really wanna get along with you two! Just like Taiga! Why don’t we introduce ourselves properly this time? It wouldn’t hurt to try, right?”

Lee and Eduard fell silent. They exchanged looks of uncertainty, debating Keitaro’s offer. After waiting with bated breath, Eduard let out a sigh of defeat. 

“Ugh… fine. Let’s just get this over with.”

Keitaro’s entire demeanor lit up with happiness. 

“My fabulous name is Eduard Fitzpatrick. Sounds fancy, right? I’m the most fab, most stylish, and most sophisticated scout around here!” 

His eyes narrowed with annoyance, “There. Happy now?”

Keitaro bobbed his head up and down, “Yes, I am! How about you, Lee?”

The green-haired scout fixed his glasses nervously, “Uhh… my name is Leonard Kurosawa. I _despise_ my full name, so just call me Lee. More importantly, my IQ is rated at a staggering 133! Only two percent of the world’s population is gifted with such a high quotient!”

Keitaro sighed with relief, “That wasn’t so hard, right? I think you two are really interesting! I’d love to know more about you two! Like how you both got into Camp Buddy!”

Eduard raised his hand, shaking it excitedly, “Oh! I wanna go first! I had _such_ a dramatic entrance! First I-”

 _“WHAT THE_ **_FUCK_ ** _IS GOING ON HERE?!”_

The three jumped in fright at the sound of Taiga’s voice. When they turned to find him, he was standing in the middle of the hall, his eyes narrow with anger, hurt, and betrayal. Eduard and Lee shook with fear, raising from their seats, “Taiga…!”

While Eduard tried to find something to say, Lee reached out to Taiga, shaking his hands, “W-We were just waiting for you-”

“With this LOSER!?!?” He angrily pointed at Keitaro, who stepped back in fear. 

Taiga snarled, clenching his fists, “I was gone for ONE minute and you’re already hanging out with our worst enemy?!”

Eduard shook his head, “I swear we weren’t hanging out with him!”

Taiga raised a brow, “Oh yeah? What about that introduction I just heard?! You _traitors!_ ”

Keitaro saw Taiga’s eyes begin to glisten over, sparkling in the dim daylight. Was he-

“Taiga, no… we’re on your side…” Lee stepped forward, begging the red-haired scout to forgive them. He sounded so desperate. 

“On my side?! Yeah, right! I bet you two were about to tell him about my secret!”

Lee shook his head frantically, “I promise we didn’t tell him anything!”

Eduard nodded, “A-And we don’t know anything about your secret, Taiga-”

“SHUT UP! After everything I’ve done for you two, this is what I get in return?! _Betrayal?”_

_This is getting bad. I need to say something!_

Keitaro stood up, walking around the table towards Taiga. He kept his voice low and soft, trying to calm the raging scout, “Taiga… we’re all friends here. I was really just hoping we could all get along…”

But Taiga only advanced on him, his eyes narrow with fury, “You already have your friends, so don’t take mine! You greedy little shit!! You’ll just stab us in the back like everyone else! I have to _protect_ them from people like you!”

Keitaro stepped back, “B-But Taiga! I’m not like that-”

“ _ENOUGH!_ I don’t want to hear anything from you! And as for YOU TWO!”

Eduard and Lee jumped. 

“If you two want to stay, then stay! Just make sure you don’t EVER show your faces around me again!”

Without another word, Taiga spun on his heel and stomped away. He opened the door to the mess hall, not even turning back to look at them before he slammed the door closed, leaving the other scouts in the hall bewildered. 

Eduard suddenly turned on Keitaro, his eyes full of tears, “This is _your_ fault, Keitaro! This was your plan all along, wasn’t it!”

Lee gritted his teeth in anger, “He must have been tracking my estimate for how long it would take Taiga to arrive so we’d be caught like this!”

Eduard grabbed Lee’s wrist, ready to walk out, “How malicious! Taiga was right about you! You really are a backstabber!”

Lee nodded, gently pulling his arm back to draw Eduard away, “We should go, Eduard… before Taiga gets angrier at us…”

The two glared at him one last time, and left, leaving Keitaro sitting alone at the table. Keitaro could only sit in silence, shocked at what happened. 

The pain and hurt in Taiga’s eyes were so strong. And he swore at one point, he had tears threatening to spill. And the way Eduard and Lee looked after Taiga left hurt him. He felt like he’d done more harm than good. He slowly turned around to face his food, now suddenly feeling sick to his stomach. 

He pushed the tray away. 

_I think… I understand why Eduard and Lee look up to Taiga so much… it’s hard to believe he did all of that… but a part of me has always felt that kindness in Taiga._

He drummed his fingers against the wood of the table. 

_However, I can’t deny the feeling that Eduard and Lee seemed just as eager as I was to be friends. I’m sure Taiga feels the same way…_

He lowered his head in shame, feeling that swirling guilt pool into his chest. 

He wanted to be their friend, but this certainly didn’t help his chances…

What was he going to do?

* * *

Keitaro spent the rest of the day meandering around the camp, trying to find something productive to do. However, with the power still out, there wasn’t much in the ways of an activity. 

He ended up retreating back to his cabin once evening fell, relaxing on his bed while he lost himself in his thoughts.

He left out a hefty sigh, staring up at the top bunk silently, questions swirling around in his mind about last year and the events that took place. He wanted to console his friends, however, but they all seemed to be preoccupied.

 _I guess everyone had their own thing to do. Yoichi disappeared to who knows where. Hiro had a nice, long nap… Natsumi set off to do more chores. Hunter went to read more of his books… and I..._

He felt his head throb in pain as he thought of the pain-filled gaze he received from Taiga. He sighed. 

Slowly sitting up, Keitaro turned to look outside, the sun finally shining through the clouds to bring them sunset. 

_Well… the power’s still out… at least the rain stopped though. I feel bad. I literally haven’t done anything productive today…_

He wanted to voice his thought, but when he remembered Hiro had stopped in at one point to lay down, he made sure to keep his concerns to himself. He shouldn’t burden anyone with his pain anyway, it never led to anything good. 

_Oh wait! My journal!_

A smile crawled on his face. 

_Why didn’t I think of this earlier? I should start writing while there’s still daylight!_

Keitaro rolled onto his stomach and pulled his journal out from under his bed, grabbing a pencil excitedly. He opened the journal and flipped to the next empty page, dusting it off a bit. He hummed in thought, thinking of what to start his next entry with. As he looked over his last entry, remembering the events of his third and fourth day. Smiling to himself, he clicked his pencil, and went to write.

* * *

_Journal Entry No. 3: July 7th (16:28)_

_“Keitaro here with my third entry for my fourth and fifth days here at Camp Buddy!_

_I think the best way to describe these past few days would be: Emotional Rollercoaster. To start things off, the day after we got back from our camping trip, we celebrated Nature Day! With Scoutmaster Yoshi away, Ms. Yuri led us with a lot of activities that helped the environment. All the scouts got to participate, and it was really rewarding!_

_For my activity, I asked if I could take pictures of the other scouts’ activities! Then, we could post them up in a poster or scrapbook (I haven’t decided which one yet DX) so we could look back on all the things we did to help nature! When I went on my activity, I learned a little bit more about each of my friends! Natsumi has a lot of pressure on him to be a perfect scout, being called one by Scoutmaster Yoshi all the time. He handles it really, but I can’t help but worry that one day, he’ll crack under that pressure. Hiro told me some updates about his mom and her health. It really worries me to know how she’s still sick. She’s done so much for me and my sister both, I really owe her a lot. I also learned that Hiro was really lonely when I got super focused on school. So, I decided to promise to spend time with him and Ms. Akiba once camp was over, to make up for the time we missed!_

_While looking for Yoichi, I learned that he has a dog named Yuki! She almost attacked me when I saw her, startled by my presence. Yoichi called her off, and I learned how he had met her, and why she wasn’t in camp with him, despite her belonging to him. I feel really bad for Yoichi, he sounded so hurt talking about what Yuki had gone through. And it turns out Hunter is an extremely talented artist! I found him drawing in the woods, and I was blown away by his work. He actually offered to teach me how to draw, and told me how he doesn’t think others will appreciate what he can do. I’m gonna make sure I prove him wrong on that!_

_I also saw something that truly baffled me. Right as I finished my activity, I was waiting outside the scoutmaster’s office, when I saw Taiga move a flower to a better spot. And then… he smiled… I’ll admit, it was a beautiful smile…_

_Despite that moment, when I ran into Taiga and his friends later that day, they all tried to gang up on me in the cabin. And I got to meet Sir Goro face-to-face._

_After a firm talk, he reminded me exactly why I was here; to make the greatest memories! I don’t think that was the last time we would talk like this…_

_Once we all woke up the next day, we found out Scoutmaster Yoshi was actually away yesterday building an obstacle course just for us! It had everything I could think of, like monkey bars, a wall-climbing area, and even a swimming pool! Sadly, it rained on us, and we all had to stay indoors with everyone._

_We were all soaking wet when we got back, and I knew none of us wanted to get sick. We all decided to shower together, and it was a little… new to me, seeing everyone’s bodies like that and them asking which ones I liked. I ended up doing something really embarrassing as a result… but I did feel a lot closer to everyone after that. Even when a blackout hit the camp, it didn’t stop us from telling spooky (and accidentally funny) stories with each other~_

_Well, the power is still out, and I’m running out of light. I hope I can make more memories, and maybe find out more about what happened in the past. It seems to be haunting the other campers…_

_Yours Truly,_

_Keitaro Nagame_

* * *

“Phew! Done!”

Keitaro closed his journal, leaning back against the pillows on his bed. 

“Good thing I was able to finish writing before the sun completely set…” He glanced out the window, taking notice of the lack of sunlight. He let out a deep sigh, stretching his arms up. 

“Heya, Keitaro!”

The brunette looked up at the sound of his name. Hiro was sitting up in his bed, letting out a few yawns. He smiled. 

“Oh, Hiro! You’re awake! “

“Yeah! Hahaha! I know I slept for SO long. But I feel really well rested too! Still no power, huh? That’s a bummer…”

Hiro tried to flick on the light, groaning irritably when nothing happened. He lifted himself from his bed, walking towards the bathroom, “Well, I guess I’ll just go get something to eat from the mess hall. You won’t believe how hungry I am right now! I didn’t have any lunch today!”

Keitaro chuckled, “Skipping meals? That’s unlike you.”

Hiro smiled, patting his stomach happily, “Yeah, guess I was more tired then I thought. Anyway, I’m gonna head out. I’ll see you there!”

Without another word, Hiro skipped out of the room, moving into the bathroom to change into his uniform. Keitaro sighed, shaking his head with a smile on his face, “There he goes, running off again… where does he get his energy?”

He slowly stood, “I guess I’ll go get changed and head over to the mess hall as well. It’s dinner time anyway.”

Keitaro moved into the bathroom, quickly changing into his uniform. To his surprise, Hiro was already gone, changing into his uniform surprisingly quickly. When Keitaro was ready, he slipped on his shoes and opened the door to the cabin, stepping into the warm night air. 

He took in a deep breath, taking in the smell of the evening. The air was a bit damp, but the smell of dew was calming to him. Fireflies danced all around him, their lights flickering on and off. He walked down the steps of the cabin, lacing his hands behind his back. He began walking leisurely towards the mess hall, wanting to take in as much of the night sky as he could. 

“Wow… it’s so quiet and peaceful out here… and the night sky is so clear… I can see so many stars!”

His gaze was fixated on the stars above him, counting all the constellations he could find. He always loved the night sky. It was colorful, magical, and even mystical. No matter how many times he saw it, it always took his breath away. 

He smiled, standing in the center of the grounds to get one, last good look at the sky before he headed in for dinner. 

That’s when he heard a door open. 

He turned around to see Yoshi walking out of the scoutmasters’ cabin, a melancholy aura about him. Keitaro turned to face him. 

_It’s Scoutmaster Yoshi! I haven’t seen him all day… I guess it wouldn’t hurt to ask how he’s doing…_

Keitaro smiled warmly, skipping across the grounds towards the older man. 

“Good evening, Scoutmaster Yoshi!” 

The man looked up, his eyes wide with recognition, “Oh, Keitaro? You must be concerned with the power outage. Power should be back first thing in the morning. I had Aiden work it out for us!”

Keitaro shook his head, “Well… I actually just wanted to check up on _you_ , sir.”

Yoshi’s eyes widened in shock, “Oh… I appreciate your sincerity, Keitaro. I’m doing fine.”

Silence. 

Keitaro’s brows furrowed together with worry, seeing the unease in his eyes. Keitaro took a tentative step forward, “You seem… troubled, sir.”

Yoshi’s head snapped up. He shook it fervently, flashing a big smile to try and steer Keitaro away from the topic, “Trouble? _Me!?_ Nonsense! Everything is going a-okay! You don’t have to worry about anything!”

Keitaro stared at him skeptically. 

_He’s obviously troubled… I wonder if it’s about what I overhead the other day with Sir Goro… maybe this is the perfect time to ask him about it…_

“Umm… Scoutmaster Yoshi… I want to ask you something.”

Yoshi looked down at him, smiling at him softly, “Yes, Keitaro? What is it?”

He looked down at his feet, suddenly nervous to admit what he’d done earlier that week. He twiddled his thumbs together, shifting back and forth on his feet, “I didn’t mean to snoop or anything but… I overheard your conversation with Sir Goro a few days ago…”

Yoshi’s smile fell, “Oh… you did…?”

Keitaro whimpered, feeling tears burn in his eyes with guilt, “I’m sorry, sir! I know it’s bad to eavesdrop! I didn’t mean to-”

“Hey, hey. It’s alright, Keitaro. Thank you for your honesty. Rest assured it’s not something you should be worried about. However, I think it’s better if you hear it directly from me. Come, sit here with me…”

Yoshi gestured to the cabin, leading Keitaro over to the wooden steps. He sat down, patting the spot next to him, welcoming Keitaro to sit next to him. The green-eyed boy skipped over, settling down next to Yoshi, looking up at his scoutmaster expectantly. 

After a few moments of silence, Yoshi sighed, leaning forward on his legs. 

“The camp president, Mr. Goro, is just concerned about the bad reputation that the camp already has.”

Keitaro’s eyes widened, “Bad reputation? Did something before, Scoutmaster Yoshi?”

Yoshi cracked a half-smile, but it quickly died, “I’m glad you’re taking interest in the history of our camp Keitaro… but… it’s not the most flattering story in my case… well… I guess it’s about time I told you about it.”

He laced his fingers together, “I wasn’t… entirely lucky during my first few years as a scoutmaster. More so, I should say that I wasn’t able to do my best in terms of handling my subordinates.”

He closed his eyes, his brows tightening with what could’ve been anger or disappointment, “An unfortunate event took place last year in the camp… it wasn’t my best performance as a scoutmaster… I’m talking about the destruction of property, vandalism, and violence.”

Keitaro lowered his head, “That sounds serious… how did it end up like that? Especially in a place like this?”

Yoshi closed his eyes, “Well… let’s just say that the campers last year had a hard time getting along with each other. They were always fighting, making trouble, and they heeded no authority… I wanted to try to make them all get along with each other… so, I organized a huge team-building activity for them… I thought a friendly competition would get them to interact with one another nicely.”

He sighed. 

“Turns out… it was the opposite of what I expected…”

Keitaro winced. 

“The winning team refused to share their prize to each member… while the losing team did not exhibit any sportsmanship… they ended up seriously hurting each other…”

Keitaro gasped, “That’s terrible…”

“It didn’t stop there. It had gotten worse with each passing day. Everyone just started hating and blaming each other. No one took the activities seriously and instead spent their time on delinquency.”

Yoshi sighed heavily, running his hand through his hair, “I only have myself to blame… I’m their leader. I should have been more responsible. Even with all those years of my experience, I was not able to execute my tasks properly.”

Keitaro looked up, a weak smile on his face, “B-But… everything’s alright now, isn’t it? I’ve heard from Scoutmaster Yuri!”

Yoshi shook his head. 

“I’m sorry, Keitaro. But it’s not.”

Keitaro went silent, feeling the sadness emanating off of him. Yoshi continued. 

“The effects of last year’s incident were so big that… negative rumors about the camp have spread all across the island. _I_ ruined the good name of Camp Buddy… most of the campers were either injured or bullied, forcing them to be sent back home… all of the staff and other scoutmasters resigned too because of that fiasco.”

Keitaro tucked his knees together, looking down at his arms with thought. It was… astonishing to him, that such a horrific event took place at this camp. This place, where Keitaro met so many good people, and was already making wonderful memories.

No one Taiga seemed so… rattled by this place. 

Yoshi sighed, “You must be wondering why I haven’t been fired yet.”

Keitaro looked down, his hands tightening. He didn’t want to say ‘yes’. 

But, before he could, Yoshi smiled, looking up towards the night sky, “It’s all thanks to Yuri. She’s a very close friend of mine. She was kind enough to ask her dad to give me this one last chance to run the camp. Sir Goro agreed on the condition that Yuri would accompany me to complete the program for the last batch this summer.”

His smile faded, and he hung his head in shame. 

“After that… Camp Buddy will be closed for good.” 

Keitaro’s heart stopped. 

_“C-Closed!?_ Is there anything we can do to stop it!?” Keitaro cried, desperation heavy in his tone. This place was _wonderful_ ! The fact that _one_ bad thing happening would shut it down broke his heart. 

Yoshi sighed in response, “Well… there is something…”

Keitaro gasped, “What is it, sir?”

“If only I could prove to him that I can do better as a scoutmaster, maybe Sir Goro would reconsider closing the camp.”

“We can do that! Just tell us what we have to do!”

Yoshi shook his head, “But… it’s very irresponsible of me to burden you and everyone with this matter. This duty is mine alone to carry!”

Yoshi clenched his fists, frustration edged into his brows. Keitaro huffed stubbornly, reaching out and grabbing the sleeve of Yoshi’s shirt, making the man turn his head fully to face him. 

“Don’t say that, Scoutmaster Yoshi! Everyone needs to do their part too! After all, we’re a family here, right? I will do my best and get everyone to work as a team!”

He had hoped that would raise his spirits, but Yoshi only heaved another sigh, “Oh, Keitaro… I wish it was really that easy… scouts today are just not as interested as they used to be anymore…”

But Keitaro smiled, “Don’t worry, sir! We’ll think of something! I’m sure of it!”

Finally, Yoshi cracked a smile, “Hehe… you’re one optimistic boy, Keitaro… this camp could really use a person like you. Even with just a week of your stay here, you have made a lot of progress with the people around you. Your unwavering determination to create special bonds is what this place needs. You remind me a lot of how I used to be.”

Keitaro’s eyes widened, “Scoutmaster Yoshi…”

His smile faded, and he closed his eyes in defeat, “But… I really am on a stump lately… I don’t know what I should do… I’m feeling anxious about Sir Goro staying here to observe my progress. One small mistake from me could be the end of this camp… I need to do something to make him think that this camp is realy worth continuing.”

He turned to Keitaro, “I’m really embarrassed to ask you this but… do you have any ideas, Keitaro?”

Keitaro looked down at his feet, rattling his brain. 

What could they do? With Goro here to watch their every move, Yoshi had a point in saying that one mistake could be the end. They had been doing activities everyday since he’d gotten there, but Goro didn’t seem impressed in the slightest. Like it wasn’t enough. 

They needed to show him… the difference between this year’s batch and last. 

The obstacle course!

“Umm… how about we take advantage of the fact that Sir Goro is here? M-Maybe you can still make use of the obstacle course you prepared for us…! Let’s have a teambuilding activity again! A friendly competition! I’m sure if Sir Goro sees us work together, he might reconsider about closing the camp, right?”

Yoshi’s brow tightened with confusion, “You mean… do what I did last year? Isn’t that kind of… _risky_? What is the other campers don’t participate…?”

Keitaro rose his head, “You told me the main reason why that incident happened was because everyone had no teamwork or sportsmanship at all. Do you see that kind of relationship among us too?”

Yoshi gasped, looking down with a bit of embarrassment, “W-Well… no, I don’t. B-But… it’s not just about that… I don’t know if I’m able to do my part so far.”

Keitaro smiled, “I know I haven’t been here long enough to say this but... thanks to Camp Buddy…” 

Memories flashed through his mind of everything he’d gone through with his friends. 

Getting lost in the woods. Talking at sunset. Waking up snuggled close to each other. 

Cleaning and doing activities with Natsumi. 

Eating and gardening with Hiro. 

Talking and reading with Hunter. 

Exploring and playing with Yoichi. 

Learning about Taiga. 

He’d only been here for a week, and he was making great memories with everyone he’d met.

“I’ve been making the greatest memories with my friends. We learn more about each other, meet new people, and have fun with each other! I owe it to the activites that you and Scoutmaster Yuri prepared for us! We’ve definitely gotten closer to each other! I’m sure everyone feels the same!”

Yoshi sat dumbfounded, “Really…?”

Keitaro nodded, “We’re very lucky to have a scoutmaster like you, sir! Please don’t ever doubt yourself because you’re the person we look up to here! You’re actions as a leader will reflect on how your followers will act. If you’re sad, everyone will feel the same…”

He flashed a bright grin, “A buddy always shows a bright smile on his face!” 

Yoshi smiled, laughing happily, “Hahaha! That’s the buddy law number three!”

He straightened himself out, staring out into the night sky with determination, “You’re right, Keitaro! I cannot just sulk here and hope everything will be okay! All of you are counting on my to have a great and memorable summer in the camp! I will give my best no matter what happens from now on!”

He turned to Keitaro, a soft smile on his face, “Yuri was right about you. You really are something!”

He reached up and ruffled Keitaro’s hair, the brunette giggling at the touch. He scooted over and wrapped his arms around Yoshi’s torso, hugging his scoutmaster tightly. 

Yoshi chuckled, using the arm he already had on Keitaro to return the embrace, ruffling his hair affectionately. 

The two sat in silence, feeling the weight of their questions and hardships lifting and dissapearing into the night sky. 

“Keitaro? Everyone’s looking for you in the mess ha-”

The two looked up to see Hunter approaching them, his eyes on the ground. When he looked up, he skidded to a stop, eyes widening at the sight of Keitaro hugging their scoutmaster. 

“Oh, Scoutmaster Yoshi... I’m sorry… did I interrupt something?”

Yoshi shook his head, smiling brightly, “Not at all, Hunter! Please go ahead and have your dinner, Keitaro. Your friends are waiting!”

Keitaro nodded, drawing back from Yoshi. The man patted Keitaro’s back a few times before Keitaro jumped up and off of the stairs. He turned and waved, “See you later, Scoutmaster Yoshi!” 

With that, the two left. 

Yoshi sighed, smiling fondly at the scouts. 

“Very good, Yoshi! I’m impressed!” 

Yoshi jumped, whirling aorund to see Yuri standing in the doorway, smiling innocently. 

“Y-Yuri! H-How long have you been there?” He asked, watching Yuri walked over and sit down next to him. 

“Long enough to ake me and Aiden worry about where you went. Though, I’ve never seen you talk to your scouts like that.”

Yoshi sighed, rubbing his temple, “I guess I just haven’t been able to vent my frustrations lately… I was reminded why I wanted this job in the first place. I guess I have Keitaro to thank for that. His presence enough reaffirms why I should get back up on my feet.”

Yuri chuckled, “It’s quite ironic, don’t you think? A camp counselor receiving counsel from a camper.”

Yoshi grinned, feeling his cheeks grow warm, “Come on… don’t tease me like that…”

Yuri smiled brightly, patting Yoshi on the back, “I just think that’s one thing you haven’t had in your years as a scoutmaster. A personal communication to the people you lead. I’m so proud of you for opening up to Keitaro like that.”

He sighed, “Thanks, Yuri…”

The rest of the evening was calm, and quiet. The scouts spent the rest of the night eating, talking, and playing. When the curfew finally feel, everyone made their way back to their cabins, turning in for the night. 

The silence that befell the camp that night would starkly contrast the events of the following day. 

The calm before the storm. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day Seven has arrived!
> 
> Definitely the shortest chapter we've had thus far. Since nothing much happens on this day, it didn't long for me to finish it. It's actually been done for about a week, but I didn't want to overwhelm yall by posting day by day, so I decided to wait a week. 
> 
> And here we are! For the fan-service scene, instead of seeing one boy, or all of them (which was my original plan, but reconned it after I couldn't find a good way to execute it), we see Keitaro; asleep in bed and dreamin' about his boys~~ Also kinda poking fun at one of the tags of the story itself, which is Keitaro telling everyone to fuck off he's not choosing just one dammit. 
> 
> The two scenes that play our were super fun to write, delving into the backstory of the camp and such. My favorite of the two was definitely Yoshi's confession about the camp's situation, hence the chapter name. 
> 
> But now, we've reached the end of the week. The new one begins, and they take a shot in the dark by hosting another sportsfest. 
> 
> And Day 8 has been the day I've waited for! 
> 
> Heads up, Day 8 will actually be posted in two parts. After planning it all out, I realized the day itself was wayyyyy too long to have it as one chapter. So, we'll be having a part one and part two. Part one is currently in the works, and I can't say when it'll be done. I took a little baby-break from writing these past few days to refresh my mind. This chapter might take a few weeks to finish. And that's just the first half. I want this one to be the best chapter we've had yet, so I'm gonna work real hard on it!
> 
> And with that, we've reached our conclusion. For CB: Sleepsong updates (and other cb shenanigans + shitposting from me) check me out on Twitter @TiraminaFW!
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	9. Day 8 (Part 1): The Sportsfest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up, this one's a doozey.   
> Buckle up buddies.

_ “Keitaro, wake up!” _

_ “Want me to lick his ear? Works every time with Mr. Perfect~” _

_ “You know how inappropriate that is, Yochi! I don’t think Keitaro would like that at all.” _

_ “Keitaro?” _

Keitaro groaned in his sleep, the assemblage of noises pulling him from his well-desired slumber. Rolling over, Keitaro reached up and rubbed his eyes, the sun beginning to pour into his irises. Groggily, his eyes fluttered open. 

His entire cabin, Yoshi included, were all standing around his bed, looking at him expectantly. His eyes shot open, and he reeled back in shock. 

“W-WAHH!!! What’s going on!?”

He pulled his blanket up to cover himself, despite being clothed already. Everyone around him laughed at his freight, including Yoshi. Hiro smiled brightly, reaching out to pat Keitaro’s head. 

“Hey, sleepy-head! Scoutmaster Yoshi’s here! He’s got something to announce, but we needed to wait for you to wake up!”

Natsumi smiled, letting out a sigh of relief. He moved his hand to the nearby lamp sitting on Keitaro’s nightstand and flicked it on and off, smiling brightly, “The power is back on, so that probably means we’ll be able to resume our daily activities.”

Keitaro winced at the light, squeezing his eyes shut and blindly reaching for Natsumi’s wrist, silently telling him to stop. 

Yoshi cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention to him, “Alright! Now that Keitaro is awake, I’d like you all to listen to an important announcement!”

Keitaro yawned, sitting up fully to listen properly to this announcement. Though, he already knew what it was. They talked about it last night. But he wasn’t expecting Yoshi to execute his idea so quickly. Well, better late than never. 

“I’m sure you all had a long rest after that intense storm and the dreadful power outage! So, I’ve decided to give you all a very special activity today to have your blood pumping and running again!” Yoshi pounded his chest, beaming proudly. 

Natsumi rose a curious brow, “What’s the activity, Scoutmaster Yoshi?”

His smile widened, “We will be having a teambuilding activity!”

While Hiro and Hunter didn’t see a problem, Natsumi and Yoichi gasped with horror. 

“A…  _ what!? _ ” Natsumi cried with disbelief, staring at his scoutmaster with bewilderment. Yoshi nodded in confirmation. 

“A friendly competition to see which teams best exhibit Camp Buddy teamwork!”

“OI! Old man! Hold the fuck up! Are you looking for a repeat of what happened the  _ last time _ we did that!? Didn’t you learn your lesson back then!?”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, looking up at Yoshi with a worried gaze, “A-Are you sure about this, Scoutmaster Yoshi?”

Hiro looked between Natsumi and Yoshi, perplexed at the tension in the air. 

“What? What happened back then?”

But his question wasn’t answered. Yoshi instead, shook his head, his brows furrowed with determination, “I’ve already made up my mind! All thanks to Keitaro here!”

_ Scoutmaster Yoshi… why. _

All eyes turned to him. Hiro and Hunter were mostly confused, silently asking him what Yoshi had meant. Yoichi stared at him with disbelief and Natsumi held a mostly blank expression with a hunt of shock. 

“Keitaro…?” 

“I’ve provided you all with new uniforms for this activity! So, please get changed as soon as possible! I’ll meet you all in the obstacle course within thirty minutes!”

He gave them a small salute, marching out of the cabin proudly. 

Once the door had shut, Natsumi dropped to the floor, burying his face into his hands, “I can’t believe Scoutmaster Yoshi is making us do this  _ again _ …”

Yoichi snarled, stepping over to Natsumi to pat his head, nodding in agreement, “And it’s pretty low of him to use Keitaro as an excuse!”

Keitaro heaved a sigh, taking his blanket off. He slowly moved off the bed, rising to his feet, “He’s… actually telling the truth, Yoichi… I-” 

“WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT’S GOING ON!?”

Hiro suddenly snapped, screeching angrily at the three. His face was red with frustration, his amber eyes almost glowing. Keitaro jumped at his sudden shift in tone, reaching out to take Hiro by the arms.

“H-Hiro, calm down…!” He cooed, rubbing the boy’s arms reassuringly. While Hiro stood and grunted, Hunter took a step to Hiro’s side, placing a shy hand on Hiro’s shoulder, “I’m quite confused as well…”

Keitaro sighed, nodding in understanding. 

“Natsumi and Yoichi were talking about last year’s incident…”

“H… How did you know about that, Keitaro!?” Natsumi gasped, slack-jawed. Yoichi stood next to Natsumi, unable to form any words at Keitaro’s surprise knowledge of the event. Hunter looked down at the floor, his eyes clouded with thought. 

“I saw him talking with Scoutmaster Yoshi last night… it looked serious.”

Keitaro confirmed, “Yes, Hunter. Scoutmaster Yoshi told me everything yesterday…”

Hiro growled, staring up at Keitaro angrily, “How come no one told us about this?”

While Keitaro worked on to calm Hiro, Natsumi got back on his feet, dusting his pants clean of the dust on the floor, “Well… it’s not a pretty story… we had a similar activity last summer that didn’t end so well… everyone thought that it was just a friendly competition, but I guess some campers took it really seriously because of the prize…”

He moved over to his bed, patting the sides. Everyone walked over and sat down on Natsumi’s bed, with Keitaro and Yoichi on either side of him. Hiro placed himself behind Keitaro, and Hunter sat down on the floor between Keitaro and Natsumi, a hand tight on Natsumi’s pants leg. 

“Yoichi and I were on the same team as Taiga at that time. He wanted our team to win the competition so badly… we won first place, not knowing that Taiga actually sabotaged the other teams,” He explained, his face crestfallen. 

Yoichi huffed, laying on his back and throwing his arms behind his head, “I don’t know what he did that had the other teams fighting against each other. But it  _ sure _ did end up nasty. People were suddenly hitting each other in the face. All for a stupid prize that Yoshinori teased everyone with.”

Hiro cocked a brow, “What was the prize anyway?”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Just some stupid exclusive trip to the amusement park…”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, looking down at his legs, “I’m not sure why Taiga wanted that prize so much… what’s worse is that shortly after the competition… some of the campers found out Taiga was behind all of it…”

He closed his eyes sadly, “He got bullied almost every day because of it…”

Keitaro’s eyes widened. 

_ Taiga _ was the one bullied!? 

“But isn’t that just karma? I mean, that Taiga guy is a real asshole you know!” Hiro snapped, crossing his arms with a huff.

Natsumi turned to the orangette, a heartbroken expression on his face, “No, Hiro… Taiga was so sorry for the things he did… he tried his best to please everyone again.”

Hiro narrowed his eyes skeptically, “Huh? That doesn’t sound like the Taiga I know.”

“He wasn’t always like that, Hiro… eventually the other campers started pointing fingers at him for  _ every bad thing _ that happened in the camp. It went on and on until everyone became so divided, they started separating into groups that simply disliked each other.” Natsumi heaved a sigh, closing his eyes sadly. 

Yoichi snorted, “Heh! They should’ve called this place  _ Gangster Camp _ last year!”

Natsumi’s hands worried together, shaking his head, “At some point, the news spread outside the camp, and scouts started dropping out of the program… pretty soon, so did the scoutmasters and the rest of the staff…”

The group went silent. 

Natsumi cracked a smile, turning to look at the ceiling, “I was kind of relieved to find out Camp Buddy was still open this year and still accepting new applicants. Unfortunately, there weren’t that many new people who joined this year’s batch. The rumors will fade in time… I hope…”

It felt like a ten-ton weight had been dropped on Keitaro’s heart. They didn’t know the real reasoning behind Goro’s presence. 

That Camp Buddy would be closing down this year if this activity fails. 

His heart hammering in his chest, Keitaro took in a shaky breath, “B-But Scoutmaster Yoshi told me that… we may be the last batch Camp Buddy ever has…”

The four gasped unanimously. 

Natsumi whirled around to face Keitaro fully, reaching out and grabbing his hand out of shock, “Wh-What!?”

Keitaro squeezed his hand back, nodding solemnly, “Yeah… the camp might close down after this summer…”

Natsumi frowned, his teeth clenching, “I didn’t know anything about that! What’s going on?”

“That’s why Sir Goro is still in Camp Buddy… he’s evaluating Scoutmaster Yoshi for that camp one last time…” He explained, looking down at his lap. 

Yoichi clapped his hands, sitting up in the bed, “I knew this place was done for anyway! Well, it was nice knowing you guys!”

Before Yoichi could get off the bed and walk away, Keitaro reached out to grab his hand, pulling him back. 

“B-But this is why we’re having a team-building activity today!  _ I _ pushed Scoutmaster Yoshi to make a good impression on Sir Goro! We just have to impress him and avoid making a mess like last year!” Keitaro puffed his chest out, pounding his torso proudly, and with determination. 

But Natsumi’s lip quivered, shaking his head, “Keitaro… it’s really easier said than done… I don’t think everyone is going to participate accordingly…”

From the floor, Hunter grabbed onto Natsumi’s leg, hugging it tightly, “I didn’t know that it was this bad already…”

Hiro groaned, moving up to lean across Keitaro’s back, burying his face in-between his shoulder blades, “I can’t believe this! Why are we even here to begin with? Maybe we should’ve picked a different summer camp, Keitaro…”

Keitaro frowned, his throat going tight with anger. He reached out to each of them, grabbing their hands and pulling them into his lap. He let out a deep sigh, placing their hands in a small pile, and eclipsing it with his own, squeezing them tightly. 

He closed his eyes, and took in the feeling. The firm, working hands of Natsumi. The course, scarred hands of Yoichi. The soft, delicate hands of Hunter. The gentle, yet tough hands of Hiro. He didn’t want to let them go. Not now. Not when he’d grown to care for them so much. He may have only been here a week, but these boys had moved his heart, and he wasn’t going to let some bloated media rumor take that away from him. 

Silence had befallen them as Keitaro gently ran his fingers over their hands. The four were too stunned and too taken, to do or say anything. Their breaths ragged, and their hearts thumping, they waited with bated breath for what Keitaro would do or so say. 

His emerald eyes fluttered open. 

“But I don’t want to lose any of you. Not when I’ve grown to care you so much…”

His heartfelt words shocked them all, and they stared at him with disbelief. They couldn’t find the right words to say, so Keitaro continued. 

“We can’t worry about being the last batch right now! Instead, we have to focus on everything we can on making the scoutmasters change their minds! I know we haven’t been together for long, but you’re all very important to me! I don’t want to lose everything we’ve shared with each other here in Camp Buddy! If the scoutmasters haven’t given up on this place, then why should we?”

They all stared at him, amazed at his determination and optimism. Blushes had dusted faces after he had finished his speech, his confession to them moving their hearts. 

Hunter moved over and leaned against Keitaro’s leg, a small smile spreading across his cheeks. 

“Keitaro’s right… to be honest... I’m surprised that I’ve actually made any friends here…”

He gently grabbed Keitaro’s leg, as if trying to hide behind it, “When I enrolled here, I always wanted the day to end as quickly as if began just to get it all over with. But… it’s different now… I’m actually enjoying myself… it feels really good to have friends.”

Hunter’s smile brightened, and he snuggled into Keitaro’s leg happily, his hand squeezing the others. 

Yoichi looked down at his lap, his hand still in the pile held by Keitaro. He slowly, yet firmly, tightened his grip, “Hmm… well, I guess it’s worth a shot. I don’t have anywhere else to go to anyway…”

He huffed, “I don’t think I’d be able to forgive myself if I let this place kick the bucket. And besides, this place has free food!”

Natsumi’s jaw dropped, his eyes wide, “I can’t believe I’m hearing those words from you two!” 

Hiro hummed, raising a brow with doubt, “Okay, I know everyone is pumped up… but how are we going to impress Sir Goro with this team building activity?”

Keitaro smiled, “If Sir Goro sees how well we work as a team, it’ll show him all the great lessons that Scoutmaster Yoshi had taught us! Then Sir Goro will finally see how great a leader Scoutmaster Yoshi really is.”

Hiro nodded slowly, “Right… so that means that every other team needs to work together as well… and as far as we all know, Taiga doesn’t believe in the word  _ teamwork _ . So how are we going to make them participate?”

Keitaro shook his head, “From what I heard from his friends, Eduard and Lee… and Natsumi said a while ago… I think… Taiga is just misunderstood… I might have an idea to make Taiga participate!” 

Keitaro smiled proudly, the thought occurring to him just a few moments ago. He knew Taiga wouldn’t participate if he just asked. He needed to think outside the box. He needed to think like Taiga. Do something that Taiga would gladly do for the chance to make fun of him. 

He had his trap, and his bait. 

“Really? How would you even get into that thick skull of his? He’s as stubborn as a rock!” Hiro inquired, leaning over Keitaro’s shoulder. But the brunette just shook his head, pounding his chest like a warrior. 

“Don’t worry! Just leave it to me! Just focus on showing Scoutmaster Yoshi and Sir Goro how great we work as a team!”

To his surprise, Yochi laughed. And not his usually condescending chuckle, but a genuine laugh, “Heh, sounds like ya already have a plan! We’re definitely not gonna screw up like last year anyway!”

Natsumi smiled, giving everyone’s hands one last reassuring squeeze, “Now that it’s all settled, let’s go get changed! Everyone must be waiting for us already!

They all cheered happily, more determined now than ever. After shaking their hands and throwing them into the air with a battle cry, they scampered to the lockers to switch to their uniforms. 

It was time to make a change!

* * *

The sun was shining brightly overhead. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and birds were sailing overhead proudly. And the camp had never been more alive in the week since it had started. 

Campers were scattered all over the obstacle course, chatting excitedly, nervously, worriedly, and proudly about the big event they were about to hold. Everyone had changed into the new uniform they were provided with. The uniform was a simple white shirt rimmed with red, and the Camp Buddy insignia painted in red on the left breast. To match, they all wore a pair of red shorts and only stopped just above mid-thigh. And lastly, they all wore white shoes to complete the look. 

In one of the big, empty spots of the course, scouts were stretching their muscles for the series of activities they’d be doing. Towards the middle of that clearing, Keitaro and Hiro were doing the same. While Keitaro stretched his arms, he looked around at the gathering with astonishment.

“Wow! Looks like everyone in the camp is here…”

Hiro nodded, rolling the sleeves of his shirt up to his shoulders, trying to make it more like a tank-top, “Looks like Scoutmaster Yoshi made sure no one misses the activity.”

Keitaro moved down to stretch his legs, “Everyone’s geared up for the activity too!”

Moving to copy Keitaro’s stretching exercises, Hiro leaned down, getting eye level with his friend, “Yeah. This place looks a lot livelier than when we first saw it. And not a cloud in the sky either! It definitely won’t be raining this time!”

Keitaro nodded in agreement, straightening himself out once he determined his body to be loose enough. 

Before they could engage in more conversation, or ask themselves what was taking the other three so long, Keitaro and Hiro were approached by two other scouts. 

“Hi, Keitaro!”

Keitaro turned at the sound of his name and smiled when he saw Seto and Felix approaching them, also in uniform and ready to go.

“Hey, guys! Looks like you two are ready for the activity as well, huh?” He gave them a small bow in greeting, flashing a bright smile.

Seto hummed indifferently, rubbing his temple, “Well… I’d rather stay in our cabin and play my PnesP.”

Felix nodded in agreement, “It’s really hot out here too. I don’t want my skin to burn…”

Keitaro smiled kindly, watching as Felix whined about the heat and Seto try to calm his smaller cabin-mate. 

He felt a tap on his shoulder, turning to see Hiro pointing outward to the crowd. From the collection of scouts, he saw the rest of his friends making their way towards them. They were all dressed in the same uniform, each having a unique flair to them. 

Natsumi was wearing kneepads, really emphasizing his tall frame. Hunter’s uniform was baggy on him, the smallest size they had not being small enough for him. Yoichi’s had the most flair, as he had ditched half the uniform altogether. He was wearing the shorts and shoes, but seemingly, elected not to wear a shirt, baring his torso to the whole camp. 

When the three saw Keitaro, Natsumi waved happily. 

“Hi guys, we’re all ready!” He announced, stopping a few centimeters from Hiro, who in turn, cocked a brow at their late arrival. 

“What took you guys so long?” He asked, in which Hunter responded with a sigh. 

“Natsumi was trying his best to get Yoichi dressed up for this activity…”

Keitaro had noticed Yoichi’s lack of a shirt, and began to panic. Worried of what would happen if the scoutmasters say him like this, Keitaro stepped forward towards the rough scout. 

“Y-Yoichi!? Why aren’t you in your uniform yet?” He asked, Yoichi raising a confused brow, “What are you talking about? I’m already dressed up.”

“Yeah. From your waist down,” Hiro deadpanned. 

Yoichi snorted, sticking his nose up, “Hah! There’s no way anyone’s going to make me wear that shirt! That size is for babies!”

Hiro snickered, narrowing his eyes, “Why not go completely naked while you’re at it? Dogs don’t wear clothes, do they?”

Not realizing it was an insult, Yoichi sighed, “I  _ would _ , if Mr. Perfect here wasn’t such a nagger.”

Hiro huffed, crossing his arms angrily, “Hmph! Showoff!” 

Taking notice of Seto and Felix’s presence, Hunter stepped in-between Hiro and Yoichi, placing a gentle hand on each of their chests, “Umm… I think we’re making this kind of awkward for Seto and Felix…”

Natsumi looked up, finally noticing that Keitaro had been having a conversation with them before they arrived, “Oh! I didn’t know you were friends with Seto and Felix, Keitaro!”

Hiro bobbed his head, smiling brightly, “Keitaro’s friends are our friends too! Isn’t that right?”

Seto cracked a smile, “Hmm? I don’t mind! You guys are cool. As they say, the more the merrier!”

Keitaro smiled brightly, clapping his hands excitedly, “What do you guys think about today’s activity? The obstacle course looks exciting! I’m sure we’re gonna have tons of fun!”

Seto nodded, his eyes wandering over to the large, olympic size swimming pool, “I’m most excited about the swimming pool! I think I’ll do well there.”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “Oh! Me too, Seto! I love swimming!”

Seto grinned, “That’s the only outdoor activity I find fun, to be honest. Probably because my big brother used to toss me into the ocean. Oh who am I kidding, he  _ still  _ does…”

Natsumi laughed heartily, “I totally get what you mean! My big brother used to do that to me as well!”

“It’s like we had no choice but to learn how to swim, right?” Seto mused, Natsumi nodding in agreement.

Hunter listened to their conversation enviously, his shoulders sagging with defeat, “I’m not sure if I’m gonna do well in any of the courses. I’m not really good with sports…”

Felix upon hearing this, scooted closer to Hunter, nodding shyly, “I’m not good with sports either… actually… I don’t think I do well with anything that has to do with the outdoors…”

Hunter patted Felix’s back reassuringly. From behind them, Yoichi laughed proudly, puffing out his chest, “Heh! This is all easy for me! You sissies can just sit back and watch my muscles do all the work!”

Yoichi flexed a few times, causing Hiro to rolled his eyes and snap back at him, “Don’t get so cocky, you meathead.”

Felix looked in-between the two worriedly, reaching up to grab Seto’s arm for comfort, “D-Do Hiro and Yoichi really hate each other…?”

Keitaro chuckled, shaking his head, “Ah! No, not at all! That’s how they always talk! You don’t have to worry, they’re really good friends!”

Hunter smiled, stepping up to Felix for confirmation, “You’ll get used to them, Felix.”

“ATTENTION!” 

Yoshi’s voice rang out, making the seven scouts jump in surprise. Natsumi clapped his hands, pulling Hiro and Yoichi away from each other before they got into another argument, “Scoutmaster Yoshi’s calling us for assembly!”

Ending their conversation, they gathered along with the rest of the camp, all dividing into groups corresponding with their respective cabins. Once everyone was ready, they all looked towards the scoutmasters. 

Yoshi was standing proudly at the head of the group, Yuri and Aiden flanking his sides. Goro was standing a bit away from them, his eyes on Yoshi rather than the scouts. His expression was unreadable; no one could tell if he was angry or not. 

Yoshi cleared his throat once more, “Attention scouts! Today is a wonderful day! A perfect day to have a very special activity! To commemorate the completion of our new and improved obstacle course, we’ll be having our Camp Buddy Sportsfest! You will all be separated into teams of five and compete with other teams according to your cabin designations!”

Yuri spoke next, “We believe that all of you have gotten along well enough with your respective cabin-mates that we expect everyone today to work together as a team! All of you will be participating in a five-part race across the entire obstacle course! And you’ll be assigning an individual member to each specific race!”

Yoshi nodded, “There won’t be any prize for this competition, so I’d like you all to take the opportunity to have fun with your buddies instead! And last but not least… our president and owner of Camp Buddy: Goro Nomoru is here with us today for this wonderful event! So, we’re expecting all of you to have a fair and orderly competition! Show us what you’ve learned, and work together as a team! Your coach, Aiden Flynn here will be the overseer for this contest of physical prowess! He will give you all a short briefing regarding this competition!”

Hearing his cue, Aiden cleared his throat, “Alright, Yoshi! I’ll take it from here!”

All the scouts turned to listen intently on the nature of the race. 

“This relay race will be composed of a hurdle race, wall climbing, swimming, monkey bars, and rope climbing. Like Ms. Yuri said, each member will be designated to a specific race! And the person to do the assigning will also be your assigned team leader! Each group should pick a team leader, based on who they all agree upon can lead them to victory! You all have ten minutes to decide on your leaders, team setup, and do some warm-up exercises before we officially begin!”

The scouts all cheered happily, clapping once the speech was finished. The scoutmasters dismissed the campers, allowing them to separate into their respective cabin and cabin-rooms. 

Keitaro rubbed his chin, thinking about his cabin in its entirety. He was in Cabin One, and his roommates would be his team. It was the scouts on the other side of the building they’d be competing against. Who was that again?

“I wonder who we’ll be competing with…” He murmured, looking down with thought. 

“They did mention that it’s based on our cabin designations,” Hunter added. Natsumi looked off to the side. 

“Then that means the group on the other side of our cabin is our competition…”

Then, he remembered. 

“That’s Taiga’s group, isn’t it?” Keitaro asked, more himself than anyone else.

Hiro snorted, “They only have three members. And I bet no one else wants to team up with them!”

_ “ _ Hah!  _ THIS _ is our competition?”

As if on cue, the thunderous voice of Taiga rang out behind them. The five turned around to see him waltzing up to them, a coy smile on his face. As usual, he was flanked by Lee and Eduard, but this time around, Seto and Felix were alongside him as well. 

“What a bunch a dweebs! It’s gonna be a piece of cake kicking your ass!” 

Taiga wasted no time in insulting them, his hands falling to his hips. Eduard nodded in agreement, fixing his hair, “I’m sure it’ll be easy for Taiga to beat them!”

Lee sneered, fixing his glasses condescendingly, “I calculate the probability of us winning to be at 99.99% with Taiga on our team!”

Hiro rolled his eyes, shaking his head, “Can you believe this nerd? He’s so annoying! Let’s beat them up already, Wolfboy!” 

Keitaro whirled around, about to scold Hiro for suggesting something like that. But Yoichi beat him to it, “Did you already forget why we’re here? You’re so dumb, Torch-head!”

Natsumi shook his head, “We’re here to show a great example of teamwork for Sir Goro, remember?” 

Hiro blushed, looking down at his feet, “Oh, yeah…”

Keitaro sighed, reaching over to pat his shoulder. Hiro smiling apologetically, before turning back to Taiga’s group, finally noticing Seto and Felix alongside them. He gasped. 

“Seto, Felix? Why are you on Taiga’s team!? I thought we were friends!” He cried, Seto, looking down at his feet with heavy shoulders. 

“Sorry, dude. We had no choice. Yoichi assigned us here.”

Felix nodded, tightening his grip on Seto’s shirt nervously, “Our cabin only had the two of us in it… and Taiga’s group needed two more.”

Taiga sighed, looking back at the two with a sympathetic gaze, “I felt  _ so _ bad for them, I just had to take them in! Don’t worry, you two are in  _ good _ hands! With the  _ great _ Taiga leading this team, we’ll definitely win!”

As he boasted his probability of winning, Keitaro saw his team getting more and more upset. He narrowed his eyes, watching as Taiga laughed proudly at his insults. 

He smiled. 

It’s go time. 

“How about we make a bet then, Taiga?”

The entire field went silent. 

The other cabins nearby had heard Keitaro, for the brunette made the offer quite loudly to get his attention. All eyes fell on him, completely stunned at what he just asked. Taiga stopped laughing, raising a brow.

“A what?”

Keitaro huffed, “A  _ bet _ . Whoever wins this race will have to do ONE thing the other team says.”

A flurry of gasps rolled across the crowd. Natsumi looked down at Keitaro with disbelief, reaching down to grab Keitaro’s shoulder, “W-Wait a minute, K-Keitaro! Are you sure about this?!”

Taiga’s eyes widened in surprise. 

But immediately, the boy roared with laughter. When his laughter died down, Taiga took a few steps forward, sneering excitedly. 

“HAHAHA!! I accept your challenge! NO TAKEBACKS! You’ve just dug your own grave! I knew you were dumb, but not  _ this _ dumb! HAHAHAHA!!!” 

Keitaro snorted proudly. 

_ Got him.  _

He took a few steps forward, meeting Taiga in the small clearing. A circle had formed around them, their friends, teammates, and other scouts looking on in awe and shock. 

Keitaro chuckled, flashing a determined smile at the red-head.

“Let’s just do our best and have fun! I believe in you!”

Keitaro gave him a thumbs-up, and a small wink. 

Taiga’s jaw dropped, staring at him with shock, “I-I always d-do my best…!”

And, to Keitaro’s pure and utter shock, Taiga’s face flushed a dark red. The scout turned his head, gritting his teeth in what he couldn’t tell was anger or embarrassment. 

“GRR! You’re really annoying! I’ll fucking beat your ass into the ground! See you at the finish line, LOSERS!” 

Slapping an ‘L’ on his forehead, Taiga laughed as he walked away, taking the rest of his team with him. 

Keitaro sighed proudly, knowing that Taiga would take his bet. Now he had a chance to rope the unruly scout into his circle. All he needed to do now, was win. 

What he  _ hadn’t _ taken into account, was the reaction he’d receive from the rest of his team. All of a sudden, Natsumi grabbed Keitaro’s shoulder and spun him around. Keitaro yelped, feeling Natsumi clench his shoulders, shaking him slightly, “K-Keitaro, why did you make that bet!? Are you THAT sure we can even beat Taiga’s team?”

Yoichi laughed, walking up behind him and slapping him on the back, “Hah! I’m surprised Keitaro even had the guts to do it!”

Hiro laughed nervously, walking over to grab Keitaro’s arm, “I’m sure Keitaro has a plan on how to beat them. R-Right? So, what’s our plan, Keitaro?”

And this is where he’d get in trouble. Keitaro knew he’d have to challenge Taiga to get the man to play nicely and to have a chance at helping him. But, Keitaro didn’t think any farther than that. It was an unfortunate trait of his…

“S-Sorry, but I don’t. Making a bet with him  _ was _ my plan.” 

_ “WHAAAAAT??!!” _

Keitaro smiling nervously. 

“How are we gonna beat Taiga’s team? Didn’t you see him? He looked so sure he’d win!” Hiro cried, grabbing fistfuls of his hair. 

Keitaro shook his head, standing proudly and pounding on his chest, “Then that means we’ll just have to try harder!”

Hiro pulled on his face, shaking his head with despair, “Noooooo… K-Keitaroooo…”

Hunter skipped up to the orangette, pulling his hands away from his face and giving him a few pats on the back, “Calm down, Hiro. Winning isn’t impossible.”

They all turned to the blonde, “Yes, Taiga is a formidable opponent but… we have a musclehead on our team.”

“H-Hey!”

Hunter winced at Yoichi’s voice, “...A-And Natsumi who was awarded the swimming badge. And I might not be the best at sports, but I promise to do my best. I’m sure if we all just do our best, we have a really good shot at winning the race. If Keitaro is this confident in our teamwork, then we have nothing to be afraid of…”

They stared at him in silence, eyes wide with disbelief at the surprise speech. Hiro cracked a smile, “Wow! That’s a mouthful coming from you, Hunter!” 

Yoichi pursed his lips, “Whoa! Who knew Twinkerbell could speak full sentences like that?”

Hunter blushed, rubbing the back of his neck. Natsumi smiled, looking down at his feet almost embarrassingly. 

“I-I never thought of it that way…”

Keitaro smiled, his heart leaping with joy when everyone’s attitudes took a turn for the better. He clapped his hands and placed them on his hips, “Let’s focus on winning this race! We need to decide who’s going to be our team leader!”

Natsumi nodded, puffing his chest out, “It’s quite obvious who’s most suited for the job, right? I have the ‘Outstanding Leader’ badge so it should be me!”

Yoichi snorted, crossing his arms angrily, “Hey! How come you get to get to be the leader all the time!? You’re already a leader in everything! I think  _ I _ should be the leader since this a strength and stamina competition! We all know who’s the strongest among us!”

Hiro narrowed his eyes, shaking his head, “H-Hey, there are most important things than that in this challenge! You can’t just use brute strength in everything, Wolfboy!”

Hunter placed himself between the toy, resting a gentle hand on their chests. 

“How about… we let Keitaro decided on who the leader should be,” He suggested, looking towards the brunette. 

Keitaro froze. 

“Fair enough.”

“Alright.”

Natsumi and Yoichi both spoke in agreement, and Hiro nodded calmly. 

Suddenly overwhelmed with pressure, Keitaro looked down at his feet. 

Who should their leader be? In order to win against Taiga, their leader needed to be able to go toe-to-toe with the red-head. He knew Taiga would be the opposing team’s leader. They needed someone who could communicate well with teammates, who could remain calm and composed, to be dedicated and reliable, and could handle situations with physical strength. All of them fit one of those categories. So, who should he suggest? 

He slowly began to panic, sweat dripping down the side of his face. He was totally drawing a blank!

Hiro smiled, exchanging a look with the other three. They came to a silent agreement, nodding in unison. 

“Actually, I’ve been thinking. When they told us we needed to chose our leader, one person came to my mind!” Hiro announced, catching Keitaro’s attention. The brunette mentally sighed. 

He nodded, “Oh, really? Wh-Who?”

Hiro cocked a brow, “ _ You _ !”

Keitaro’s heart skipped a beat. 

Yoichi nodded, “I don’t mind Keitaro bossing me around.”

Natsumi smiled, “I have no objections either.”

“I also think Keitaro would be a great leader for us,” Hunter agreement, smiling happily. 

Keitaro looked between the four, completely stunned by how quickly they all agreed to the suggestion. Natsumi clapped his hands, “It’s decided then! Keitaro will be our team leader!”

The emerald-eyed boy blushed darkly, his heart hammering within his chest. He grabbed fistfuls of his shirt, twisting it around nervously as he searched for his words. His jaw quivered, “Ahhh… th-thanks everyone! I never thought all of you looked up to me this way.”

They all nodded with a smile, “We do, Keitaro!”

With another proclamation from Natsumi, Keitaro’s blush only deepened. Hiro skipped over to him, giving him a few pats on the shoulder for reassurance. 

“Haha! Today is your chance to prove yourself, Keitaro!” He chirped, the scout nodding nervously. 

Hunter walked up to him, standing at Keitaro’s side, “Where should we start, Keitaro?”

“Ah, right…! So… it’s like Sir Aiden said: There’s gonna be a hurdle race, wall climbing, a swimming match, a monkey bars race, and rope climbing. I have to assign each of you a role in the competing categories. But I want to know which ones you guys are most comfortable with first.”

After gaining control of his embarrassment, Keitaro took in a deep breath and went to work, needing to assign a race to each of his teammates. Hunter looked down at his shoes, gently kicking the ground. 

“W-Well, as long as it’s not too physical, I think I can pull it off…”

Hiro stared at him with a deadpan expression, “What are you talking about, Hunter? This is a  _ sports _ contest, all the activities are gonna by physical.”

Yoichi sighed, shaking his head with disappointment, “Twinkerbell here is obviously the weakest link, so just give me the toughest one and my muscles will have it in the bag!”

Hunter whimpered, feeling guilt stir up in his chest at their words. Natsumi gently grabbed Hiro and Yoichi, pulling them back a bit “You guys don’t have to put it that way…”

But Hunter nodded, “No, I actually agree…! I don’t excel in any of these categories…”

Frowning, Keitaro reached out and wrapped his arm around Hunter, pulling the tiny scout into his side protectively. The blonde blushed heavily in return, a small squeak escaping his throat. 

“Guys! Don’t say that! The race hasn’t even started yet. We should all believe in Hunter a little more! And besides, we shouldn’t argue over who’s the best on our team! We all have to work together!”

While Hunter tried to piece his melting mind back together, Natsumi gave everyone a stern nod, “Keitaro’s right! Besides, all that matters is that we have fun together!”

Yoichi snorted, “Hmph. You won’t be saying that if we lose this bet!” 

Before they could any more off-topic, Hiro’s hand shot into the air. When Keitaro turned to him, letting Hunter go after he was sure the boy felt better, he nodded, giving him permission to speak.

“Hey, Keitaro! Tell me any race you want me to be in and I’ll do it! You know how I’m pretty good at everything!” He proclaimed, offering himself for whatever race Keitaro had in mind for him. 

While Keitaro pursed his lips in thought, mulling over what would be best suited for him, Yoichi chuckled, “Yeah. Especially at being annoying.”

“Whatever, Wolfboy!”

“If there’s anyone here who’s gonna ace this competition, it’s gonna be me! This bod of mine will carry our team all the way to victory!”

“Pfft, your bod isn’t anywhere near as big as your head.”

Keitaro let out an audible sigh, drawing the two’s attention. When they looked over to see him  _ glaring _ at them, the two shrunk back. Keitaro huffed, “Guys, we can’t be bickering like this. We have to work together! We should start deciding which roles each of us are gonna be participating in.”

Natsumi immediately rose his hand, “I volunteer for the swimming course, Keitaro! I’ve been swimming my entire life and I’m sure I’m fast enough when it comes to water!”

With someone finally stepping up to a course, Keitaro clapped his hands excitedly, nodding in confirmation, “Oh yeah! That’s great, Natsumi!”

The blunette held up a hand, “Though if there is anyone who thinks they can do better, I can gladly five the position to them.”

No one stepped up. 

“Nah, I hate getting wet.” Yoichi looked at his hand, commenting nonchalantly and confirming for everyone else that they were comfortable with Natsumi taking the swimming course. 

“Well, that settles it! Natsumi will be our official swimmer for the course!”

However, Natsumi almost immediately looked down with fear, lacing his hands together with worry, “F-Fair warning, though. In case I do lose my part of the race, I hope you guys will be able to forgive me…”

Keitaro looked up at the tall scout with shock. He skipped over and took hold of his hands, rubbing them gently to calm the uneasy man. 

“What are you saying, Natsumi? Everyone knows you’re the best here! We’re sure you’ll win this one!”

While Natsumi was flushed with embarrassment as Keitaro rubbed his hands, Yoichi snorted from behind. He waltzed up and rested his chin on Keitaro’s shoulder, making the brunette freeze. 

“Hah! I wouldn’t say that if I were you, Keitaro. You don’t know how nervous Mr. Perfect over here gets when people expect too much from him.” 

Natsumi frowned, “Stop that, Yoichi!” 

While the violette laughed, Keitaro jumped at a thought. He turned around to face Yoichi, patting the man’s chest since he was only a few centimeters away, “Oh! Speaking of Yoichi, I know two courses that could use your physical strength the most! The monkey bars and rope climbing. Is it okay if I place you in either one of those races?”

While trying to push down the blush rising to his cheeks as Keitaro patted his chest like a drum, he hummed in thought, “Hmm… the monkey bars sound good to me. I can’t even imagine any of you do that better than me.”

Keitaro nodded, pulling back to stand in the middle of them, “Okay, great! So, that leaves the hurdle race, wall climbing, and rope climbing.”

“Why not give Torch-head the hurdle race? That needs stamina and endurance. And we all know he never runs out of that.”

Natsumi nodded at Yoichi’s suggestion, “Yeah, Hiro is an energetic guy. I’m sure he can outrun any opponent no matter who it is.”

“The only downside is, he never shuts up.”

Hiro blushed at the praise, “Aww! Thank you, guys- HEY!” He whirled around to face Yoichi after registering the insult he’d thrown at him.

Keitaro chuckled, reaching up to pat Hiro’s head lovingly, “Haha! If you think you can do it, then the hurdle race is all yours, Hiro!”

The boy flushed, leaning his head into Keitaro’s hand, “Sure! I can handle that, no problem! I’m gonna ace this one for you, Keitaro~!”

Keitaro smiled, tracing his thumb across Hiro’s cheek, “Alrighty then! Now that just leaves us…”

Hunter looked down, his shoulders beginning to quake, “U-Um... both of the remaining tasks involve… heights… I’m scared of heights.”

Keitaro felt a pang of guilt puncture his chest. Yoichi sighed, face-palming, “Oh, COME ON, Twinkerbell! You should’ve said that in the first place! Not when everyone’s already picked a race!”

Natsumi leaned down, placing a hand on his shoulder, “Do you want to switch courses with anyone, Hunter?”

He shuffled his feet, “W-Well… to be honest, I’d probably underperform in any of the sports you guys chose too…”

Keitaro shook his head, stepping up to the small blonde, “Don’t say that, Hunter! I’m sure you can do it if you try!”

Natsumi nodded, giving his shoulder a slight squeeze, “Yeah! If we all do our best, I’m sure it’ll all turn out perfect!”

Hiro skipped up, standing in front of him, “If you want, you can switch races with me since mine doesn’t involve any heights!”

Hunter shook his head, placing his hand on his chest, “N-No, it’s alright Hiro! You should stick with the course that you’re best at!”

“Are you sure you don’t want to switch, Hunter?” 

He nodded, “Y-Yeah, I’ll be fine! I’m sure I’ll be able to manage it, thanks to you guys!”

Keitaro nodded, patting Hunter’s head, “Alright! Then that just leaves me the rope climbing! I think I can handle that!”

The five all smiled, feeling a sense of comfort and confidence wash over them. Hiro bounced on his feet, suddenly hugging Keitaro. 

“Cool! Now that we have a plan all laid out, I think I’m starting to have a good feeling about this race! We might really have a shot at this!”

Natsumi nodded, walking behind the two to pull them to his chest, “Keitaro is a great leader! I can see how well he’s thought all of our tasks through!”

While Natsumi reached over to pull Hunter and Yoichi into their group hug, Yoichi squawking with embarrassment, Keitaro felt a light blush dust over his cheeks. He nuzzled into the embrace, smiling brightly. 

_ Everyone looked up to me as their leader… they’re all really relying on me… while I was assigning roles, I noticed that everyone had their own strength and weakness. But, I realized they all needed my help just a little bit more before we got started… _

“Alright, let’s win this thing! Remember that how this ends doesn’t matter, as long as we work together and believe in each other. I want to show everyone, the scoutmasters and Goro including, how much you boys mean to me!”

The four seemed to stop breathing. They all stared down at Keitaro, before exchanging looks of bewilderment and disbelief. After taking in Keitaro’s tender words, they all squeezed their leader tightly, making Keitaro squeak, but laugh at the displays of affection. 

“Hey guys! Are you all-OH! Am I…”

They all whirled around to see Aiden, standing a few meters away with a sly grin on his face, “Am I… interrupting something??”

They all took a moment to think about what he was insinuating. 

Then, they all shock away from each other, blushing darkly and heavily. 

Aiden chuckled, moving up to get closer to them, “The other team is all set up, and we’ll be starting the first match soon!”

Keitaro nodded, slapping his cheeks to clear them of his blush, “Oh yes, Sir Aiden! We’re all geared up and ready to go!”

Aiden grinned, “Awesome! Then, will the first participants please proceed to their corresponding positions? The hurdle race is about to begin!”

Hiro gasped, his blood stirring excitedly, “Oh, that’s my cue! I better go get in position!”

Yoichi snorted, punching the scout on the shoulder, “You better not be all talk and win this one. You got that, Torch-head!?”

Hunter snorted, making small fists in determination, “Y-You can do it, Hiro!”

Natsumi smiled, patting Hiro on the head and beginning to lead the others to the benches, “We’ll be cheering you on from the sidelines! Best of luck, Hiro!”

The three walked away, finding a spot for them all to sit. To Hiro’s confusion, Keitaro stayed behind, still standing next to him. He rose a brow, “You’re not gonna join them, Keitaro?”

Keitaro shook his head, “Oh, I will! I just wanna make sure you’re all set for the race.”

Hiro smiled, pounding his chest like a warrior, “Don’t worry, Keitaro! I’m gonna ace this one for sure!”

Keitaro smiled, “I know you will, Hiro! I believe in you!”

Hiro snickered, placing his hands on his hips, “Hey! You better give me a reward for winning this one, okay?”

Keitaro sighed, smiling fondly at him. Hiro always did this, asking for a treat when he accomplished something on his behalf. Not that he ever said no, he loved doing things for Hiro. The boy nodded his head, “Anything for you, Hiro!”

Hiro blushed, looking away embarrassingly, “Hey! Th-That’s my line! Although…”

He poked at the ground with the end of his shoe, a dark blush dusting over his cheeks, nose, and ears, “I would love it if you gave me a kiss as a reward~”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, “Wh-What??! R-Really!?”

If he was being honest with the innermost parts of his heart, he had no objections to that request; and that embarrassed him. But Hiro laughed loudly, waving his hands. 

“Haha! I’m just messing with you, Keitaro! I’ll leave whatever my reward for winning this up to you! Better think quickly, though. I’ll be dashing past that finish line faster than you know it!”

The two looked off to the side, watching Lee walk up to the starting line. Hiro smirked, “Looks like I’m just up against Four-eyes over there, anyway! Hehe! This is gonna be a piece of cake!”

Keitaro reached out to pat Hiro’s head, smiling nervously, “W-Well, don’t get too cocky. Just make sure to do your best and we’ll win for sure!”

Hiro smiled, jumping up and down excitedly, “I won’t hold back! Not when my eyes are on the prize: That sweet kiss from you at the finish line.”

Keitaro flushed again, smiling nervously, “A-Ah. A-Anyway, good luck on your race, Hiro! We’re all counting on you! We’ll be cheering you on from on the sidelines.”

Keitaro gave him one last smile before trotting off to the bench where everyone was waiting for him. 

Hiro sighed, looking down at the ground with defeat, “Ahh, Keitaro, you’re so dense sometimes…”

He shook his head, slapping his cheeks, “Okay! Focus, Hiro! You gotta win this one and impress Keitaro BIG time!”

He moved to the starting line, doing a few light stretches before their race started. Aiden walked up to the side of the field, holding up a megaphone. He switched it one, giving it a few test taps before holding it up to his lips. 

“ALRIGHT! Is everyone ready!? This marks the beginning of the Camp Buddy Summer Sportsfest! Hosted by yours truly,  _ Aiden Flynn! _ For the first competing teams, we have Cabin One! It’s Keitaro Nagame’s team against Taiga’s Akatora’s team! The first portion of this race will be the sprint and hurdle track!”

The crowd cheered loudly, all the scouts clapping riveted. 

From the start of the circular track, Hiro stretched his legs, glancing over at Lee. 

“So I’m against you, eh?”

Lee sneered, fixing his glasses tighter to his face, “Don’t underestimate me. I have calculated the probability of my crossing that finish line first to be far greater than yours.”

Hiro chuckled, rolling his eyes, “Your math isn’t gonna help you here! This is a  _ race _ ! You just gotta move your feet as fast as you can! Besides, I won’t let you get first. Keitaro’s counting a lot on me to put me on this first obstacle!”

Lee huffed, lowering down to ready themselves for the race. 

Aiden held up his hand, holding the megaphone higher. 

“Alright! On your marks!”

Hiro rolled his shoulders, licking his lips. 

“ _ Get set…” _

He threw down his arm. 

“ _ GO!!!” _

Hiro threw his weight onto his right leg and sprung forward. 

The scouts cheered as Lee and Hiro raced forward. Hiro began effortlessly leaping over the hurdles, his bounding so flawless it almost looked like he was flying. Aiden whooped loudly with zeal. 

“Whoa! Looks like Hiro from Team Keitaro is off to a great start! He’s jumping through every hurdle like a pro!” 

The crowd watched with amazement as Hiro sailed over each hurdle, landing firmly on his feet to race off to the next one. Yoichi whooped loudly, pumping his fists in the air, “Hah! Torch-head’s totally kicking his butt!”

Hunter clapped happily, hoping in his seat, “Wow… look how far ahead he is!”

“We’ll win for sure at this rate!” Natsumi cheered, hugging Keitaro to his side. 

Keitaro smiled, jumping up onto his feet as he watched Hiro race across the track, “Let’s keep cheering him on, guys! Hiro’s got this!”

From the track, Hiro felt a surge of happiness. 

Across the group on the other bench, Taiga was standing on his feet, shouting angrily. 

“LEE! What are you doing?!”

Lee desperately tried to keep up, having to stop to jump over the hurdles, unable to keep running like Hiro had been, “H-He’s too fast! I… I can’t catch up!”

Eduard flailed his arms, “Lee! You can’t give in! Stop dragging your feet!”

“I-I’m t-trying! I can’t keep up with him!!!”

Aiden chuckled, watching Lee shake his head and attempt to rush ahead to Hiro. He held up the megaphone. 

“Looks like Lee from Team Taiga is getting his second wind, but it doesn’t look like it will be enough to catch up to Hiro! Hiro’s already secured his lead. And the gap between runners is getting bigger and bigger! If this keeps up, Team Taiga can kiss this round goodbye!”’

Taiga roared with anger, “Ugh, I shouldn’t have put Lee in this race! He’s worthless!”

“Look at him! He’s just standing there, watching that orange maniac win!” Eduard screeched. 

Lee was beginning to falter, his legs were wobbling, “W-Wait… I just need to catch my breath…”

Hiro’s face wore a bright smile as he leaped over the last few hurdles, the end of the track in sight. 

Aiden lifted up his megaphone, “And now, onto our last hurdle! Looks like Team Taiga has given up halfway!”

Keitaro had leaped off the bench and was jumping around excitedly, his face red as he screamed, “ **You’re almost there, Hiro! You can do it!** ”

Hiro felt his heart skip a beat at the sound of Keitaro cheering him on. He felt a surge of adrenaline as he neared the final hurdle. The surge of power allowed him to pick up his pace, sailing down the track faster than before. A bright smile graced his cheeks as Keitaro continued to scream his praises. 

_ I know you’re counting on me, Keitaro! I won’t let you down! _

Hiro narrowed his eyes, preparing for the last hurdle. He took another few steps, preparing for the hurdle. 

He stepped ahead, threw his weight, and leaped over the hurdle flawlessly, Lee too far behind him to ever catch up. 

He stuck the landing and raced a few more paces, Aiden holding his hand in the air. A few seconds of silence, and then…

_ “AND WE HAVE A WINNER! Congratulations to Hiro Akiba of Team Keitaro for winning the first round!” _

The crowd roared with delight. Hiro ran a bit to get off the track before coming to a stop, his chest heaving with exhaustion. He moved over the grass and leaned over, holding his knees for support as he worked to catch his breath, 

“Whew… hah… hah…”

_ “HIRO! YOU DID IT!!!” _

The amber-eyed scout looked up to see Keitaro charging at him at full speed. Hiro sat up and opened his arms to welcome the hug gratefully. 

Keitaro slammed into him, knocking the wind out of Hiro as he lifted him clean off his feet, squealing with happiness. 

“Haha! I told you, you can always count on me!”

Keitaro only cried louder, jumping up and down with Hiro in his arms. Before he could ask Keitaro to put him down, the brunette let him sink a bit in his arms, bringing them eye level to each other. Hiro was about to ask what he was doing, before Keitaro suddenly pressed his face into Hiro’s cheek. 

Hiro squeaked like a choked hamster when Keitaro planted a quick smooch on his cheek, pulling back with reddened cheeks, “You asked for a kiss as a reward! And I think you deserved it!” 

Hiro couldn’t hear him. His brain had gone to mush and his muscles went limp, hanging in Keitaro’s arms like a ragdoll. Keitaro rose a brow, “H-Hiro…? Are you okay…?”

Hiro only let out a strained groan. 

“Way to go, Torch-head! You kicked Four-eyes’ butt!”

Keitaro turned to see the rest of his cabin racing towards them. They all crashed into them, surrounding them in a giant hug. 

Natsumi ruffled Hiro’s hair, turning to see Lee still weakly crawling over the hurdles, Taiga screeching angrily. 

“Lee hasn’t even crossed the finish line yet! If we keep this up, we’ll win in no time!”

No answer. 

They all looked down at Hiro, the boy still staring blankly at the sky with a face that would put a tomato to shame. Hunter looked at Keitaro. 

“What did you do?”

“Uhhhh…”

Keitaro chuckled nervously, giving Hiro a few shakes, “Come’on Hiro! We need to cheer everyone else on!”

Hiro gasped, snapping back to reality to notice his cabin surrounding him. He smiled brightly, trying to contain his blush, “Hahaha! Sorry! Just tired from the run, that’s all!” 

He let Keitaro put him down, dusting off his legs. 

“Now it’s you guys’ turn! Let’s go for a 5-0 shutout and show them how awesome we really are!” 

Hunter nodded, “I hope it’s possible. The rest of the competition looks really tough!”

Yoichi snorted, “Hah! Good point, Torch-head DID just go against the scariest one of their team, after all!”

Natsumi looked back to the track, Lee’s team surrounded a now fallen runner. Lee had landed face-first on the track once he finished, Eduard fanning him with a towel. Seto and Felix stood off to the side, whispering to each other. 

Taiga stood alone, his crimson eyes narrowed with anger as he pierced their gaze, his fists clenched. 

“Yeah… the rest of Lee’s team look pretty pumped up after that first loss. I’m not sure they’ll let any of the other matches go so easily,” Natsumi rubbed his arm, looking nervously at their opponents.

Keitaro shook his head, “Don’t say that, guys! Let’s just do our best and follow Hiro’s lead on this one! We already won the first round! Like Hiro said, let’s just keep winning from here!”

Hiro nodded happily, pounding his chest with pride, “Yeah, Keitaro’s right! I knew I could do it thanks to him. You guys can too! We gotta do our best not to let our team leader down, right?”

They all nodded in unison. 

“Hey there, buddy!”

They all turned to see Aiden walking over to them, a bright smile on his face. He stopped next to Hiro, ruffling the boy’s hair. 

“Good job winning that race! Man, you were zooming through the track! Seems you’re pretty motivated today, huh?” 

Hiro chuckled nervously, “N-Not really, bro! I just got lucky!”

Aiden cocked a brow, a sly smile crawling on his face, “Are you sure you’re not just inspired because of a certain…  _ someone _ today?”

His eyes darted over to Keitaro, who in turn smiled brightly. Hiro flushed darkly, and he pushed Aiden away, “Hngh! Don’t you have a sportsfest to host?!”

Aiden erupted with laughter, patting Hiro’s head, “Hahaha! Right! Right!”

He skipped away, holding up his megaphone.

“PARTICIPANTS OF THE NEXT RACE! Please take your positions! It’s now time for the second race! The rock-climbing race is about to begin!”

Keitaro smiled, spinning on his heel to face Hunter. 

“That’s your cue, Hunter!”

Hunter winced, “A-Ah! I-I’m next…?”

Natsumi patted his back, “I know you can win this, Hunter!”

The small blonde winced and Yoichi snorted, repeating Natsumi’s gesture and slapping him on the back, “Yeah! So, come on and grow a pair!”

Keitaro chuckled, gently grabbing Hunter’s shoulders to pull him back, “Haha! I think you guys are putting a bit too much pressure on Hunter. What matters is that you do your best! That’s all!”

Hunter turned around to face Keitaro, his eyes wide with fear, “B-But what if I still lose…?”

But Keitaro shook his head, his smile only widening, “None of us will think less of you, even if you do.”

Yoichi sighed, shaking his head, “Come on, Twinkerbell! You seriously think we’ll just leave you if you lose or something?”

Hiro skipped over to Hunter, giving him a big hug, “Yeah! We’re not Taiga’s team!”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “You should listen to Keitaro, though. Just do your best, and you’ll be just fine!”

Hunter shakily nodded his head, “R-Right… I better get into position then…”

“We’ll be cheering you on from the bench! Best of luck, Hunter!”

With Natsumi’s final cheer, the three walking 

Hunter took in a shaky breath, placing his hand on his chest. His knees were beginning to shake with fear, the pressure of their first win weighing down on him. 

From behind him, Keitaro took a few steps forward, reaching out to place a tender hand on his back, “H-Hey, are you still nervous, Hunter?”

He nodded, “A bit… I just don’t know if I can do this… I’m not really the best at physical activities, after all... what if we lose our first point because of me!? Nnn! I should’ve read more about this activity when I had the chance-”

“Woah, woah, relax, Hunter. You don’t need to be too worried about this, you know. I know we’re all here to try and impress the scoutmasters today, but we can’t do that if we let the pressure get the best of us.”

Hunter shook his head, tears beginning to pool into the corners of his eyes, “I-It’s just, if I don’t win this… it’ll put us at a disadvantage, and we’ll end up losing the bet, and then the scoutmasters are going to be so disappointed… a-and-”

“Hunter.”

Keitaro took both of Hunter’s hands, pulling them close to him. 

“Do you trust me?”

Hunter’s eyes widened, a tear falling down his cheek. He nodded hastily, “W-Wha… of course I do, Keitaro!” 

He smiled, “Then trust me when I say,  _ you’re going to be fine _ .”

Keitaro lifted a hand, gently wiping his tears away with his thumb. He let his hand sit for a moment, caressing the boy’s soft cheek. 

Hunter smiled, leaning into the comforting touch, “Th-Thank you, Keitaro… you always know what to say.”

Keitaro smiled, “I’m glad I got that off your chest.”

Hunter smiled, sniffling. After rubbing his eyes, he dove into Keitaro’s arms, burying his face into the brunette’s chest. 

“You’re really a good friend, Keitaro. I wish I’d known you a lot earlier…”

Keitaro smiled, returning the hug happily. He buried his nose into Hunter’s hair, calming Hunter and his own nerves, “Better late than never, right? Just so you know, I’m glad I met you too.” 

The two sat in the embrace for a few moments, letting the time slowly pass by. When Keitaro lifted his head, he saw Felix approaching the rock-climbing wall. 

“Oh! Looks like Felix is gonna be your opponent!”

Hunter turned his head and looked over his shoulder, “Ah, I see…”

His voice sounded, off, to Keitaro. Like he sounded, relieved? The boy rose a brow, looking down at Hunter curiously, “Something the matter, Hunter?”

He shook his head, “Well, Felix and I get along quite well. He and I are on pretty much the same wavelength out of everyone else in camp… but… knowing neither of us are the sportiest campers around, I’m really not sure how this race will turn out for us.”

A whistle blew. 

“A-Ah! That’s my cue, Keitaro. I have to go to the podium.”

Keitaro smiled, rubbing Hunter’s head one more time, “Alright! Good luck, Hunter! We’re all counting on you! We’ll be cheering you on from over here!”

Keitaro withdrew himself from Hunter’s arms, moving back over to the bench. Hunter called after him, “Thank you, Keitaro! I promise to do my best!!”

Hunter walked over to the podium, placing himself next to Felix underneath the rock-climbing wall. 

“ALRIGHTY SCOUTS! We’re ready to begin the second event! The rock-climbing race! Climbers! Please get into position!”

Aiden began shouting again through his megaphone, the campers all around them clapping and whooping excitedly. 

Hunter moved a bit close to the wall, shaking his wrists a bit to loosen them up. 

“Oh hi, Hunter!”

Hunter looked over, smiling at Felix. 

“It’s such a surprise I’m competing against you. I’m kind of glad,” Felix rubbed his hands together, smiling nervously. 

Hunter nodded, “Me too, actually. If I was up against any of your other team members, I’d definitely lose. Well… maybe if it was Eduard I’d still have a good chance.”

Felix snorted, “Haha! I was thinking the same thing…! I wish the both of us luck, then. Our teams are counting on us, after all.”

Hunter nodded, “Right…!”

The blonde huffed with determination. 

_ Felix is right… Even if we are about to do something neither of us are good at, teams still trust us enough to do our best. Especially Keitaro. I won’t let him down!!! _

Aiden readied the mic again. 

“Alright! On your marks!”

Hunter and Felix grabbed the first rocks. 

“ _ Get set… _ ”

Hunter furrowed his brows and licked his lips. 

“ _ GO!!!” _

Hunter pulled himself up, setting his feet onto the colorful, plastic rocks. With shaky arms, he climbed the wall. 

“It looks like our two climbers are off to a slow but sure start! A smart choice! Rushing up these steep walls would make anyone slip and fall!”

From the bench, the four others watched with bated breath, all frozen with fear as they watched Hunter nervously climb the wall. 

“Hunter looks really tense…” Hiro whispered, worrying his hands together. 

Natsumi bit his lip, “He keeps looking down… he must be scared of falling.”

Hunter kept looking over his shoulder at the ground, his face going white with fear. Yoichi rolled his eyes, getting to his feet, “Oi, Twinkerbell! Don’t screw this up!!”

Keitaro bopped Yoichi on the nose, puffing out his cheeks, “Guys, it won’t help if we stress Hunter out! Let’s just keep cheering him on!”

Aiden watched the two climb, both relatively close in distance to the finish line. 

“This race looks like it’s gonna be close! At this point, there seems to be no clear winner! Uh-oh, it looks like the two of them have reached the toughest part of the climb!”

Suddenly, Felix let out a squeal of fright, tucking himself to the wall, “A-Ah! This is too scary, I can’t do it…!”

Taiga stood up, his face red with anger, “COME ON, FELIX! Step on it! What the hell are you doing?!”

Lee pulled on his face, hiding it with his towel, “His grasp is slipping! This could prove disastrous for us!”

Eduard threw his face into his hands, “UGH, don’t let that little shrimp beat you! We can’t let them win!”

Hunter looked over at Felix, seeing the tiny scout shivering against the wall. 

_ Felix is falling behind… this is my chance! But… one slip can ruin everything, I don’t want that to happen, I don’t want Keitaro to- _

“ **You’re almost there, Hunter! I know you can do it!”**

Hunter looked over his shoulder at Keitaro, who was jumping up and down in front of the bench, waving his arms around. 

“Ah…! That’s Keitaro’s voice…!”

He furrowed his eyes with determination. 

_ That’s right…! With Keitaro counting on me, there’s nothing I should be afraid of! _

Hunter huffed, looking directly up to the top of the wall. Pushing the fear down into the depths of his gut, he moved up the wall, hopping from rock to rock. 

Felix was unable to move, and Hunter took the chance to claim victory. 

He jumped up a few more rocks, reaching up to grab the top of the wall and…

“AND WE HAVE A WINNER! Congratulations to Hunter Springfield of Team Keitaro for winning the second round!”

Hunter moved to the top of the wall, laying across the platform to catch his breath. The crowd down below began hooting and hollering, claps erupting from the benches. After Hunter had caught his breath, and Felix got to the top, Aiden escorted the two down the ladder. 

Hunter walked into the field, taking a few deep breaths to slow his racing heart. 

“Hunter! YOU DID IT!!”

Hunter turned around just in time for Keitaro to capture the small blonde in a bone-crushing hug. He squeaked with surprise, but smiled at the display of affection. 

“A-Ah! Keitaro! Th-Thank you for cheering me on!”

Keitaro hugged him tighter, snuggling the small scout close to his chest. Without warning, Keitaro nuzzled his face into Hunter’s cheek, giving him a small peck. 

Hunter’s jaw dropped, and his knees gave out in shock. Is that what Keitaro did to Hiro!? 

Keitaro chuckled, ruffling his hair, “I thought you deserved a reward for your win! A little kiss for our little winner!”

Hunter turned away, shoving his face into his hands and holding back the biggest scream of his life. 

“Hunter!”

The two looked up to see the rest of the cabin running to them. Natsumi threw his arms open and scooped up Hunter, twirling him around, “Great job, Hunter! We knew you could do it!” 

Yoichi snorted, patting Hunter on the back, “Hah! We got extra lucky ‘cause Snowball froze midway.”

Hiro nodded, “Yeah! It took Felix five minutes to cross the finish line after Hunter did! Let’s keep this winning streak up and win this whole thing!”

All five of them cheered, Hunter rubbing his face to try and calm his nerves down. 

Hunter smiled, “The real reason I pushed myself to the limit is because I knew you guys were cheering for me… I just did what I could so I wouldn’t let you guys down.”

Yoichi huffed, “You may have gotten us out next point, Twinkerbell, but you can bet on me to snatch the next one for us!”

The group laughed happily, all patting Hunter on the back. 

Aiden moved up to them, his smile brighter than the first time, “Well, lookie here! Congratulations Hunter for winning the second round! I have to say, I was surprised by how calm you were! You certainly handled it better than, well…”

Aiden gestured over his shoulder with his thumb. They all looked over to see Felix hunched over a trash can, Seto gently rubbing his back and whispering to him. 

They winced. 

“Yikes… Snowball gonna be alright?” Yoichi asked. Aiden nodded. 

“Yeah, the fear of the race got to him as soon as he had his feet planted on the ground. Don’t worry though; once he gets it all up, he’ll be alright.”

They sighed with relief. 

“Anyway, I came here to congratulate you, Hunter! And also to ask the participants of the next race to please take your positions! The monkey bar race is about to begin!”

Yoichi screeched, making everyone jump. 

“FINALLY!! You guys just sit back, and watch how it’s done!”

Hiro snorted, punching his shoulder, “You better not be all talk and win this one, Wolfboy! We can’t lose our first point cause of you!” 

Hunter clapped his hands, smiling brightly, “Y-You can do it, Yoichi!”

Natsumi smiled, “We’ll be cheering you on from the bench! Best of luck, Yoichi!”

The three walked away back to their bench, leaving Keitaro and Yoichi alone. The large scout looked over at Keitaro, cocking a brow. 

“What’s wrong? Afraid I’m gonna lose?” 

Keitaro shook his head, “No, Yoichi. I honestly think you’re gonna win this one!”

He furrowed his brows, “Than… what are you still doing here?”

Keitaro grinned, taking a few steps forward, “I just wanted to give you a little extra support!”

Yoichi blushed, sticking his nose up angrily, “W-Wha- I don’t need no cheerleader!”

But Keitaro only chuckled, “W-Well, I’ll still cheer you on regardless.”

Yoichi snorted, looking down at his feet, “Do whatever you want. You’re lucky I’m even playing along. I don’t usually participate in lame events like this. I already got fed up with it all last year.”

“Oh yeah…” 

Keitaro looked down in thought, rubbing his chin. He wanted Yoichi to be more enthusiastic about the event. How could he… 

Lightbulb. 

“Tell you what. How about I give you a  _ treat _ if you win this match?”

Yoichi stopped. He slowly looked over his shoulder, his brows raised with interest. 

“Huh? What kind of treat?”

Keitaro rubbed his cheek, a small blush crawling over his cheeks. 

“Well… I know you’ve been having a morning ‘problem’... so I thought maybe I could-” 

Yoichi’s entire world seemed to light up. 

“Hell yeah! I wouldn’t say no to a free jerk-off! You sure know how to get me pumped up!”

Keitaro’s heart stopped. His face darkened with embarrassment. Jerk-off? That’s not what he meant! 

“A-Ah…! I meant I want to give you a bath not a-” 

But Yoichi placed a hand onto Keitaro’s lips, making the boy squeak. Yoichi slowly rose a coy brow, his eyes darkening with what Keitaro could only determine to be lust. 

“Nope. I knew  _ exactly _ what you meant so don’t bother trying to worm your way out of it.”

Keitaro gulped, his mind melting into putty. Yoichi smirked, tracing his thumb over Keitaro’s lips. He turned his head to look over his shoulder. 

“Anyway, it looks like I’m up against Spaghetti-boy there. This’ll be a piece of cake. Talk about a stolen win.”

Yoichi dropped his arm, freeing Keitaro’s lip to speak again. He collected his strewn about thoughts and smiled nervously, “W-Well, don’t let your guard down, Yoichi. Just make sure to do your best and we’ll win for sure!”

Yoichi snorted, “Psshhh! Like you need to be worried. I can handle myself just fine.”

Keitaro laughed, his blush covering his nose and ears, “Haha! Alright! I believe in you, Yoichi!”

Giving him a small wave, Keitaro skipped back over the bench, his heart racing. 

Yoichi watched him leave, crossing his arms with a huff. He looked down at the ground, kicking the dirt around. 

“Hmph. That idiot… why does he always have to say that weird stuff?  _ I’m  _ the one who’s supposed to annoy him, not the other way around.”

He heaved a sigh, “Oh well. Gotta focus. Don’t wanna embarrass myself by losing this round, and our first point.”

He stopped, his eyes wide with shock. 

Then, he burst out laughing, “Gahaha! As if! I can’t believe I’m even THINKING about losing!”

Yoichi shook his head, walking over to the set of monkey bars he’d be swinging across. Aiden made his way to the end of the bars, holding his megaphone up. 

“Alright everyone! The third race will be the monkey bars! This course will definitely need you to get those muscles up and pumping!”

The crowd cheered, this time louder. With two races down, and two wins to Keitaro’s team, the stakes were high. They had overheard the bet, so if Taiga’s team lost this one, they could kiss the overall win goodbye. 

Yoichi rolled his shoulders, cracking neck joints as he sneered at Eduard, who was standing at the end of his bar nervously. 

“Ya ready to lose, Spaghetti-boy?”

The pinkette gasped, placing a hand on his chest, “ _ Spaghetti-boy _ ! Why I never! Are you insulting my fabulous hair?!”

Yoichi scoffed, cracking his knuckles threateningly, “You better not try any funny business, or else I’m gonna straighten up those curls of yours!”

Eduard rolled his eyes, sticking his nose up, “Wow, Mr. Cocky much? Don’t think you’re gonna win just because you have those big, beefy… succulent… pecs…”

Eduard droned off, unable to finish his sentence as his eyes wander over Yoichi’s body. Yoichi felt a shiver of disgust race up his spine. He snapped his fingers to draw his attention. 

“HEY! My eyes are up here, ya freak!”

Eduard gasped, shaking his head, “WHAT I’M SAYING IS… I’m a lot stronger than you might think! I’m a  _ glamazon _ when it comes to competing!”   
  


Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Ugh, whatever. You’re not making any sense at all.”

He turned away from Eduard, staring up at the first bar. He smirked, squatting down to ready himself for the jump. 

Aiden held up his arm. 

_ “ _ Alright! On your marks!”

Yoichi rolled his shoulders. 

_ “Get set…” _

Silence. 

_ “GO!!!!” _

Yoichi sprung up and seized the first bar. He wasted no time and began racing across the bars, his arms never missing a beat to move forward. Aiden whooped loudly. 

“Whoa! Would you look at those muscles go to work! He’s swingin’ through those bars without breaking a sweat!”

Hiro stared at him with awe, unable to deny how amazing the scout was doing. 

“Alright! Wolfboy’s totally kicking his butt!”

Hunter blushed, covering his face as he stared at Yoichi, “Look how far ahead he is!”

Natsumi clapped happily, a wide grin spreading on his face, “We’ll win for sure at this rate!”

Keitaro jumped up, standing on the bench and screaming, “Let’s keep cheering him on, guys! Yoichi! You got this!”

Taiga was losing his mind from across the field, screaming at Eduard, his voice full of malice. 

“EDUARD! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?”

Eduard had stopped swinging altogether, staring at Yoichi with a dropped jaw, drool rolling down his chin, “I can’t really focus here…! Do you see those muscles?! They’re just so… juicy~!”

Lee stood up, “You have to move your body like a pendulum, Eduard! Start generating forward momentum, quickly!”

Aiden chuckled, “Looks like Eduard from Team Taiga has fallen behind! He’s no match for those biceps! If this keeps up, Team Taiga can kiss this round goodbye!”

Taiga screeched, stomping on the ground, “Ugh, I shouldn’t have put Eduard in this race! He’s worthless!”

“Eduard! Come on, you have to counterbalance your weight properly!” Lee shouted, trying to demonstrate. 

Eduard reached out for the next bar, his arm shaking wildly, “My arms can’t handle this anymore! I’m gonna f- AHH!”

“AAAND Eduard from Team Taiga is down! He’s gotta get back up on those bars to finish the race! But it looks like he won’t have the time! Yoichi is almost to the finish line!”

Keitaro was jumping up and down on the bench, Hiro holding his hips so that he wouldn’t fall,  **“You’re almost there, Yoichi! You can do it!** ”

Yoichi smirked at the sound of his voice. 

_ Heh… I’ll show you what I can do, Keitaro! _

Yoichi threw himself across the bars, smirking proudly. He moved across the bars until he reached the last one. He swung across and threw himself over the finish line. 

_ “AND WE HAVE A WINNER!  _ Congratulations to Yukimura of Team Keitaro for winning the third round!” 

Yoichi dropped to the ground, taking a satisfied sigh. 

“Hehe… piece a cake…”

“YOICHI!”

He turned up to see Keitaro running to him, his arms open wide. 

“You did it!” 

Keitaro threw himself into Yoichi’s torso, hugging him tightly. 

Yoichi snorted, patting Keitaro’s head, “Hah! It was all a piece of cake!”

Keitaro squealed, grabbing Yoichi’s face. The violette squawked when Keitaro pulled him down to plant a kiss on his cheek, a warm blush over his face. When he pulled away, Yoichi’s jaw had dropped. 

“I told you I’d give you a treat! I know I said something else, but that isn’t something for the public eye, now is it?” 

Keitaro winked, patting Yoichi’s cheek. 

The large scout said nothing, his face turning a dark red with embarrassment. 

Yoichi didn’t get to say anything before the rest of their cabin raced to them. 

Hiro slapped Yoichi on the back, ruffling his hair, “Way to go, Wolfboy! Didn’t know you were part monkey too.”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, looking away with a dark blush on his face, “Shut up, Torch-head.”

Hunter was jumping up and down, squealing happily, “Y-You really did it Yoichi! We’ve won three out of five matches!” 

Yoichi snorted, “Psh. I was way too easy~ That stupid spaghetti-boy didn’t stand a chance! He was all talk!”

Natsumi nodded, “And with, once again, Eduard not crossing the finish line yet, we’re bound to win. Well, technically, we’ve won three out of five matches already. We’ve technically won the bet!” 

Keitaro held up a hand, “Now, now, boys! Let’s not jump the gun here. That may be true, but we have two matches left. Let’s not get overconfident and toss these last two matches alright?” 

They all nodded in understanding. 

Footsteps began to approach them from behind. They looked over their shoulders, expecting to see Aiden approaching them again. 

However, it was Yoshi. Their head scoutmaster walked towards them, a bright smile on his face. He stopped when he got a few feet from Yoichi. 

“Great job on that race, Yoichi!”

The scout in question rolled his eyes, turning away from him, “Who invited lame-o here?”

Yoshi chuckled, dismissing the insult without thought. He lifted his hand and gently patted Yoichi’s head. 

“H-Hey! Don’t touch me!” Yoichi snapped, grabbing Yoshi’s wrist and pulling it off of him with a snarl. The scoutmaster only laughed, drawing his hand away. 

“I’m actually surprised you even participated in this event. Could it be because you had your friends this time to cheer you on?” He booped Yoichi on the nose, making the scout snort. 

“Hmph! I would’ve won even if no one was watching me!”

“Haha! Alright, if you say so~”

“Shut up! Did you seriously just come here to annoy me?!”

The rest of the cabin watched the exchange with interest, the two acting like a doting father with his bratty teen. 

Before anyone could say anything, Aiden walked up behind them, “Participants of the next race please take your positions! It’s time for the fourth ra-OH! Yoshi! Do you need more time?” 

Yoshi shook his head, stepping away from the group, “Oh no, no. I just came here to congratulate Yoichi for being such a good sport!”

Keitaro smiled, watching the two fondly, “Scoutmaster Yoshi really keeps an eye out for you, huh Yoichi?”

He snorted, “Whatever! Buttcheeks said to get ready for the fourth race, so get moving!”

Keitaro chuckled, opening his arms to herd his group back towards the court, “Hahaha! Right, right!”

Aiden chuckled, patting him on the back, “Well, with that done, the next match shall be the swimming race! All participants please head to their respective diving boards! I’ll be overseeing the event from the lifeguard's seat over there!” 

Keitaro turned to Natsumi, smiling brightly, “Oh! That means you’re up next! Are you ready for your race?”

When he opened his eyes, he saw Natsumi swinging his arms around, huffing and puffing heavily. He raised his brow, “Um… what are you doing, Natsumi?”

Natsumi turned to him, humming in response, “Oh, I’m pumping myself up for my race, Keitaro! I’m about to do a couple of stretches too! I don’t want to get cramps in the middle of the match!”

Keitaro mumbled, “D-Didn’t you just stretch a minute ago…?”

Natsumi nodded, “Yeah, but I still have to make sure! I don’t want to lose because I was unprepared! If I get cramps, I’ll slow down, and if I slow down, I’ll lose, and if I lose, I might disappoint everyone!”

Keitaro held up a hand.

“A-Ah! I almost forgot to adjust my goggles! I have to make sure they’re secured tight on my head right before I swim!”

Keitaro opened his mouth to speak-

“I hope the water isn’t too hot… or too cold! It might affect my performance!”

“Natsumi!”

Keitaro grabbed his hands, bringing his tangent to a halt.

“Relax. You shouldn’t be panicking over this kind of stuff. Just do your best, and that’ll be enough~”

Yoichi slapped Keitaro on the back, “Let him do what he wants, Frogboy. He’s weird like that.”

Hunter stepped up, pulling Yoichi away to lead him to the bench, “Natsumi always gets the job done, anyways. I know he’ll win this one for us!”

Aiden’s whistle blew. 

Natsumi gasped, turning towards the pool, “A-Ah, that’s my cue! I better go get into position!”

Hiro smiled, giving Natsumi a final pat on the back, “We’ll be cheering you on from the bench!”

The bluenette nodded, “Right! I won’t let you guys down!”

“Good luck, Natsumi!”

With one final word of praise, they moved back to the bench. Keitaro hung back, continuing to watch Natsumi do his stretches.

“Umm…”

He was unsure of how to start a conversation. Natsumi turned to him, his arm behind his head, “Hmm? What’s up, Keitaro?”

The brunette could see the nervousness in his eyes. Despite how well he was hiding it, there was a slight tremble in his body. He sighed, wishing that Natsumi didn’t always keep up this facade of perfection while putting his own feelings away.

He reached out and pulled down Natsumi’s hand, giving it a few comforting rubs, “You got this, Natsumi! We all know you do!”

Natsumi blushed, flashing a nervous smile, “O-Oh! Thank you! I appreciate it!”

Keitaro only beamed, pulling his hand close to his face, “We’re sure you’ll keep your eyes on the prize and win this first round!”

Natsumi’s blush darkened, feeling the brunette’s soft, warm breath on his fingers. A surge of determination stirring throughout his blood. 

“You don’t need to worry, Keitaro! Once I’m in the water, I’ll be a hundred percent focused on winning the race!”

Keitaro smiled, patting his hand a few more times, “Alright! I believe in you!”

He dropped his hand, turning around and skipping back to the bench. 

Natsumi sucked in a breath, relaxing his muscles for the race. 

He heard a chuckle behind him, “I knew I’d be going up against you for this race, Natsumi!”

The tall camper turned around to see Seto walking up to the other diving board, smiling brightly. Natsumi returned the gesture.

“Best of luck to both of us, dude!”

Natsumi climbed up onto his diving board, nodding in agreement, “Thank you! Let’s do our best!”

Aiden took his seat in the lifeguard chair, holding up his megaphone. With this being the fourth race, he saw no reason to do any more dramatic announcing, and went straight to the countdown. 

“Alright! On your marks!”

Natsumi lowered him down, grabbing the end of the board. 

_ “Get set…” _

He raised his hips…

“ _ GO!!!” _

Natsumi pulled on the board and threw himself into the water, closing his hands into an arrow to break the water’s surface. Once he was submerged, he opened his arms and began to pull against the water, breaking the surface once more to race forward. 

Hiro gasped, jumping up on the bench, “Whoa, look at Natsumi go! It’s like watching a pro swimmer go for the gold!”

Hunter leaped onto Hiro’s back, climbing up the boy to see better, “But Seto is right on his tail!” 

From the other bench, Eduard gasped, smiling brightly at how well Seto was performing, “I’m gagged! Who knew we had such a swimming wiz on our team?”

Taiga clenched his fists, grinding his teeth together angrily, “He better win this one or else!”

The anger in Taiga’s voice scared Keitaro, making the brunette hide behind Yoichi to block him from view. 

Yoichi reached back and grabbed Keitaro’s hand, while standing up to swing his other hand in the air to scream at Natsumi. 

“OI! MR. PERFECT! You gotta swim faster! Tech-geek’s gaining on you!”

Hiro grabbed Yoichi’s arm, pulling it down, “Hey, don’t pressure him, Wolfboy!”

He pulled his hand away, “Mr. Perfect runs on pressure. I’m actually helping him here!”

Hunter held his hands over his eyes to shield them from the sun, seeing Natsumi gain about a meter on Seto, “But Natsumi’s really acing this one so far! We’ll get our  _ fourth _ win at this rate!”

Keitaro jumped up on the bench, standing on his toes to see better. Seeing him struggle, Yoichi snickered. He grabbed Keitaro’s shirt and lifted him clean off the bench, plopping the boy on his shoulders. Keitaro squealed with glee, grabbing Yoichi’s head for balance and watching the pool. 

“Let’s keep cheering him on guys! Natsumi’s got this!”

From the pool, Natsumi could hear their cries each time he broke the surface. His heart warmed, and he felt a surge of adrenaline. 

_ Wow, I can hear everyone cheering me on from here! I have to pick up my pace and win this for my team!  _

Suddenly, Natsumi gained speed, racing through the water and far ahead of Seto. When his opponent broke the surface, he noticed how far ahead he was. 

Eduard gasped, “W-Wha-? That stupid blueberry’s swimming like a dolphin! How’s that possible?”

Taiga leaped from the bench, “Seto! What are you doing?! HURRY UP!”

Aiden grinned from the lifeguard chair, “Ohoho~ Looks like there’s no taking Natsumi from his lead. That gap between our two swimmers is only getting bigger and bigger! If this keeps up, Team Taiga will have to say goodbye to this round!”

Keitaro whooped loudly from Yoichi’s shoulders, flailing his arms around like an excited toddler, “ **You’re almost there, Natsumi! You can do it!** ”

_ I know you’re counting on me, Keitaro! I won’t let you down! _

Natsumi pulled against the water faster, throwing his hand out to grab the end of the pool. 

“AND WE HAVE A WINNER! Congratulations to Natsumi Hamasaki of Team Keitaro for winning the fourth round!”

The crowd went wild, cheering wildly at the team’s fourth win. 

Natsumi pulled himself out of the pool, gasping for air. He let himself fall onto the floor, his uniform soaked thoroughly.

He took a few deep breaths, preparing to sit up and-

“NATSUMI! YOU DID IT!”

Natsumi looked over to see Keitaro sailing towards him. Before he could register his approach, the brunette dove down and slammed into Natsumi’s chest, knocking the breath out of him.

Natsumi gasped for air, but laughed at the monster hug Keitaro was giving him. The boy had Natsumi essentially pinned. 

“A-Ah, Keitaro-!”

He tried to speak, but Keitaro wrapped his arms around Natsumi’s neck and pulled him close, planting a firm kiss on his cheek. 

The bluenette squeaked, either due to lack of air or the kiss. Keitaro pulled back and flashed a brilliant smile, a blush dusting his face. 

“You won! All of you did! I’m so proud of you!”

Keitaro laughed gleefully, snuggling back into Natsumi, who in turn blushed feverishly. 

The other three rushed over, cheering and clapping excitedly. Yoichi jumped down and yanked the two up. 

“Way to go, Mr. Perfect! You kicked Tech-geeks’s butt!”

Hunter dove into Natsumi’s arms, snuggling the bluenette tightly, “Yeah! I still can’t believe we won four out of five rounds!”

Keitaro nodded, “Natsumi, that was incredible! I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone swim that fast!”

Hiro chuckled, “Haha! For a second, I thought you were a fish, Natsumi!”

The boy blushed, rubbing the back of his head, “Aww, stop it, guys! I wouldn’t have won if it weren’t for you all cheering me on!”

Yoichi laughed, pounding the boy on the back, “Haha! You probably only won because we were yelling at you like crazy!”

Hunter giggled from underneath Natsumi’s arm, a soft smile on his face, “Well, I guess that really helped Natsumi one way or another.” 

“It did! Thank you, everyone! I’m just happy I got the opportunity to help us win!”

The five cheered happily, clapping with glee. 

Keitaro smiled brightly, the pride swirling in his chest. Each of his boys had won their race, the group getting happier and happier as the fest went on. 

“Attention! Will the participants of the final race please get into position! It’s time for the rope climb!”

Suddenly, a flurry of nervousness and pressure crushed Keitaro’s soul. They all had won their races, now it was his turn. 

The pressure was on.

Keitaro took a few deep breaths, trying to calm his beating heart.

Hiro looked down at him, noticing his nervous demeanor. 

“Hey, are you okay, Keitaro?” He asked, drawing everyone’s attention to the brunette. He smiled, nodding nervously. 

“Y-Yeah… I’m alright. It’s just… you all won your races, I’m a little nervous that I’ll lose mine. Besides, Taiga probably isn’t happy with me…”

They all gasped with disbelief. The one that had gone out of his way to make sure they were confident now had no confidence himself? 

Natsumi huffed and grabbed his shoulders, drawing the boy closer. 

“Keitaro! You did everything you could to make us feel better before our race! Now it’s our turn!”

The boy gasped. Hiro continued. 

“Yeah! You made sure we were all pumped up and ready to go! Don’t go doubting yourself now that it’s your turn!”

“It doesn’t matter if you win or lose! Everything you’ve done for us is enough for us in the long run!” Yoichi added, punching his shoulder. 

Hunter dove into Keitaros’ chest, wrapping his arms, “Don’t look down on yourself Keitaro! You’re the one we look up to! You can do this, we know you can!”

His heart was racing a million miles a minute. A gentle blush crawled across his nose and cheeks as his boys surrounded him in a big group up. A few tears dribbled down his cheeks, and he buried his face into the embrace. 

“ _ Th-Thank you boys…” _

The four squeezed him tighter, wanting to return the feelings Keitaro had shown them before their competitions. 

Aiden’s whistle blew for the last time. 

Keitaro looked up, wiping the tears from his eyes and plastering a determined smile on his face. 

“Alright! I’m off! I’ll win this thing for you!” 

He pumped his fists into the air and ran off, the boys calling out words of encouragement after he did. 

He raced up to the large tower that had the two, long ropes dangling from it. The crowd was cheering as he ran, all waving excitedly at him. He returned a few of the waves, blushing at the attention. He stopped in front of his rope and gazed up at the top, taking in a few deep breaths. 

_ “Looks like it’s come down to you and me, huh?” _

Keitaro felt the marrow in his bones freeze. He slowly turned to see Taiga standing across from him, glaring at him icily. 

He looked  _ livid _ , like he suspected. 

Keitaro took in a deep breath, calming his nerves.

“Taiga-”

“Shut your damn mouth! You may have won the races and the bet; but when I beat you in this race, I’ll make sure you  _ never _ recover from the humiliation!” 

Taiga spat at him, making the hairs on the back of Keitaro’s bristle. He took in another breath, deciding to make the race fair. 

“How about this, Taiga? Let’s make this an all or nothing race. You win, I’ll do what you want, and vice versa.” 

But that only made him angrier, “What?! You think you can pity me like that!?”

Keitaro held up his hands, taking a step back, “I-I’m not pitying you, Taiga. I just want to give you a chance to win and all!”

Taiga’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. The two had a staredown for a few moments, eyes locked. 

He cocked a brow, and sneered, “Heh, fine. You wanna lose this bet  _ that _ badly? Fine. I’ll take you up on your offer. But hear this, Mr. Popular. You better enjoy the attention while it lasts. ‘Cuz, when I win this bet, I’ll make sure no one in this camp even remembers your name!”

Keitaro sighed, “Taiga… I know we may not be friends right now. But I just wanted to say…”

He smiled and held out his hand. 

“May the best man win!”

Taiga’s eyes widened momentarily, staring down at the hand. But the look faded, and he slapped Keitaro’s hand away. 

“Did you really have to tell me that? You think you have to come DOWN to my level?!”

Keitaro withdrew his hand, shaking his head, “What? No! I-” 

“Oho~! Looks like the two teams ladders will be facing off with each other! You two ready?” 

Keitaro nodded, deciding to drop the conversation and turn to his rope, “Yes, sir!” 

Taiga growled, grabbing his rope tightly, “Tch! I swear I’m not gonna lose to you!”

Aiden clapped, “Great! Into position boys!”

Keitaro grabbed his rope, placing one foot on the wall. He closed his eyes. 

_ Taiga… ever since I came to Camp Buddy you’ve hated me… but I haven’t given up on you… _

“On your marks!”

_ I know I can convince you that Camp Buddy is a great place… both you and Sir Goro will see! _

_ “Get set…” _

_ I’LL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO SPEND THE BEST SUMMER HERE WITH EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY WITH YOU! _

_ “GO!!!” _

Keitaro grit his teeth and lifted off the ground, grunting with determination as he began to scale the rope with Taiga close on his tail. 

“AAGHHH!!! KEITARO!!!! Just give up already!”

“I have to do this! My friends are counting on me!”

The two were locked in the competition and a conversation, Taiga swearing at him. The red-head snarled. 

“Hah!  _ Friend?! _ That’s BULLSHIT! Haven’t you figured out by now that everyone here is just using you?! You’ll just be a pitiful excuse everyone uses to feel better about themselves!”

“You’re WRONG! They’re nothing like that! We’re there for each other. Through the good and the bad! That’s why I’m not giving up no matter what! Deep down, I know you’re no different than them. We can be friends too!”

Taiga climbed more, now nose for nose with him. He snarled. 

“Don’t you fucking call me your friend! You don’t know jack shit about me! You go around acting like you know everything, but you weren’t even here last year to see this place  _ really _ is! And stop pretending you understand me! You have NO IDEA what I’ve been through! If you were in my place, you wouldn’t have come back here!”

Keitaro shook his head, staring at him with a pleading look, “But I want to help you, Taiga!”

Taiga’s eyes flashed with something like pain, before narrowing angrily, “Since when did I ask for your help, you asshole?! I don’t need help from anyone! I know everyone here will just turn their back on me as soon as I make one mistake! It already happened to me, so they’ll do the same thing to you!”

A tear rolled down his cheek. Keitaro’s eyes widened. 

“T-Taiga…”

“ARGH! I’m gonna beat you right here and now! And when you finally fail, you’ll see it for yourself!!!”

Keitaro felt like he’d been stabbed through the heart. 

_Hearing all those things from Taiga, it made me realize that he must’ve gone through something really bad to be this hateful…_ _maybe I didn’t really know anything as he said… was I wrong this whole time?_

**_“KEITAROOO!!!”_ **

He gasped at the sound of his name. He looked over his shoulder for a brief moment to see…

“B-BOYS?!”

His four cabin-mates were at the bottom of the climb, jumping and cheering. 

**_“YOU’RE ALMOST THERE!! I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT!!!”_ **

**_“K-Keitaro! I-I BELIEVE IN YOU, KEITARO! YOU CAN DO IT!”_ **

**_“HEY! KEITARO!! I’M ONLY GONNA SAY THIS ONCE SO YOU BETTER LISTEN UP, YOU HEAR ME?! GIVE IT ALL YOU’VE GOT AND SHOW ME WHAT YOU’RE REALLY MADE OF!”_ **

**_“KEITARO! GIVE IT YOUR ALL!! WE’RE COUNTING ON YOU!”_ **

He felt like he could burst into tears. His boys were down there, screaming his name and telling him he could win. And here he was, doubting himself yet again. 

_ They’re cheering for me! Ever since I arrived at Camp Buddy, you’ve all been there for me through the thick and thin! No matter what we went through, we came out on top, together! _

He smiled. 

_ That’s why I’ve gotta do my best and show them that they can count on me too! _

Keitaro felt a surge of strength overtake him. He suddenly began climbing with incredible speed, flying up the rope and past Taiga. 

He didn’t hear Taiga’s swear of anger, or the cheers of the other scouts. All could hear was his boys’ cheers echoing in his mind, and all he could see was the top of the wall. 

He was so close… so close… almost…!

_ “GOAL!!! And the winner is…” _

Silence. 

_ “TEAM KEITARO!” _

* * *

Keitaro had no idea how he ended back up on the ground. Maybe Aiden had gotten him down. All he knew was that he was now laying the grass, panting heavily with sweat pouring down his neck and cheeks. 

He heaved for air, his mind reeling. 

Did… did they…

“I… I can’t believe… it… we really… won…!”

“KEITARO!”

He looked to his left to blurrily see his team racing towards him. He couldn’t pull himself to his feet in time, and in an instant, was buried underneath them all. 

“YOU DID IT! WE WON!” Hunter shouted, squeezing Keitaro’s chest happily. 

“5-0 SHUTOUT BABY! HELL YEAH!” Yoichi screeched, pounding his chest against Hiro’s, who whooped and hollered.

“I can’t believe it! WE WHOOPED THEIR BUTTS!”

“We can change their minds, WE CAN CHANGE THE SCOUTMASTERS MINDS! I CAN’T BELIEVE IT!”

Keitaro couldn’t tell who was yelling anymore. He could only laugh with zeal as his team hugged him tightly. 

“You’re cheering pulled me through! I almost gave up, but you didn’t give up on me! Thank you, boys!”

Keitaro openly began weeping, suddenly overcome with emotion. The boys all laughed and wiped his tears. Keitaro hiccuped and sniffled, so afraid that he was going to lose and disappoint them. 

But when they suddenly returned the kisses he’d given them, smooching his tears away, his heart swelled with happiness. He proved himself to be enough for them! 

“THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!”

They turned at the sound of Taiga’s booming voice. When they looked over, Taiga was screaming at his team, his eyes wild with anger. 

“If you all stepped up your game, we wouldn’t be in this mess!!”

Eduard stepped back, never seeing Taiga so angry at them, “I-I’m sorry, Taiga! That ape was just too wild for me!”

Lee lowered his head in shame, “I-I’m so sorry Taiga… I underestimated my opponent…”

Felix hid behind Seto, his lip quivering, “I’m sorry, everyone… but I really tried to-”

But Seto held up his hand, shaking his head, “Save it, Felix. You don’t need to apologize to them! We did our best back there!”

Taiga sneered, “Oh, yeah?! For all I know, you two were sabotaging us and just letting them win!”

Seto snorted, crossing his arms, “Hey! You don’t get to point your finger at us! You lost your part of the race too!”

Felix grabbed his arm, pulling him back, “S-Seto! Calm down! That’s not going to help at all…!”

But Seto snarled, “I can’t help it! This guy is way too full of himself!”

Taiga flared up, pulling back his sleeve, ready to beat the bloody pulp out of him, “Why you!!!”

Felix hugged Seto’s side, taking a few steps back to pull Seto with him, “Taiga looks really angry, Seto. Let’s just get out of here and avoid causing any more trouble…”

Seto sighed, finally backing down to Felix’s desperate pleas. He turned around and wrapped his arm around Felix’s shoulder, “Yeah! Let’s go to Keitaro’s team! At least he isn’t a total douchebag like this guy!”

Taiga stepped forward, “What the  _ fuck _ did you just say?! Don’t you two know that we just lost a bet against Keitaro?!”

Seto rose a brow, “A bet…? What bet?”

Eduard shook his head, “T-That stupid Keitaro wants to see all of us grovel and humiliated in front of everyone!”

“Y-Yeah! He’s the real bully here!” Lee added. 

Taiga snorted, “Know what? Maybe your so-called friend wants to see you humiliated too! That fake-ass, smug prick just tricked you both into being his friends! He doesn’t care about you two as long as he gets what he wants!”

Felix whimpered, “W-What? I-Is Keitaro really…”

“Taiga.”

They whirled around to see Keitaro approaching them, free of tears and with his cabin-mates flanking his sides. 

A crowd immediately gathered around them. The bet was on. What would Keitaro have them do?! 

Taiga gritted his teeth, clenching his fists. 

“We won fair and square. You gave us your word. Now you have to hold your end of the deal.”

Despite the tension in the air, Keitaro’s voice was soothing, and calm.

Taiga snarled, “You piece of shit… what do you want us to do? Kneel down and kiss your feet?!”

Eduard wailed, falling to his knees, “Oh, this is dreadful! I’m not ready to be humiliated like this!”

Lee’s glasses slumped down as the boy grabbed fistfuls of his hair, “I can’t believe how low we’ve stooped… this is embarrassing!”

But Keitaro shook his head, “Don’t worry you two. There was a tiny change in the plan at the last minute. The only one who has to do anything is Taiga.”

Taiga sucked in a breath, his fists clenched angrily. 

Hiro rose a brow, “Last minute change? When did…”

“Right before our race. This is between him and me.”

The four all looked at Keitaro with disbelief. Murmurs began rolling across the crowd. 

_ “Woah… he’s so cool!” _

_ “What’s he gonna have Taiga do?” _

_ “He should make him dance naked in front of the scoutmasters! That would be hilarious!” _

Keitaro heard these words and shook his head, glaring at the ones speaking. They snapped their jaws shut and backed down. 

“I’m not doing anything like…”

“WHY?! It is because you pity me? You think that, just because you’re giving me a free pass this time, it would change anything between us? You think I can’t handle whatever bullshit you’re gonna do to me?!”

Taiga suddenly began screaming, his face red with anger.

“I’m telling you! This will be your only chance to get back at me, so DO YOUR WORST!”

Taiga was in Keitaro’s face, the brunette’s expression unreadable. 

He heaved a sigh. 

“Taiga…”

The crimson-eyed boy flinched at his tone. It was low, cold, and dark-sounding. 

Keitaro looked up, “Taiga, at first, I was gonna have you apologize for all the things you’ve said and down. I want to be friends with you, I haven’t given up on that. But I realized something while we were climbing… that wouldn’t work.”

Taiga stepped back.

“If I just… leave you with this anger inside, it will only fester and grow. It will boil out of control, and lead you down a path of anger and darkness. I want to save you from that. I know you may think I’m lying, but I’m not. I want to help you, Taiga.”

He looked up at the sky. 

“...I’ve thought about this long and hard, wondering how I could bring you closer so that I can help you move on from whatever’s hurt you like this, and after some careful thought, I think I’ve finally figured it out.”

Taiga felt his heart pounding against his ribcage. What was he-

“Pack your bags, Mr. Akatora.”

The crowd gasped. Taiga’s went wide with shock and horror. Was going to make him leave-

Keitaro smirked. 

_ “You’re bunking… with ME.” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg. 
> 
> We've made...
> 
> And this is only part 1 lol
> 
> Took about two and half weeks to write, but I had a lot of determination to write this, since I've been excited for this chapter since starting this story. 
> 
> We've made it to Day 8, and the big turning point it....
> 
> TAIGA'S BUNKING WITH KEITARO!!!!
> 
> I decided that, in order for Taiga to bond with every, and not just Taiga, he'd have to bunk with Keitaro in HIS cabin, not the other way around. Plus, this also allows Keitaro to bond with his other boys as well. 
> 
> I decided that, for a twist in the sportfest, we'd have a 5-0 win score, Keitaro's team winning each round. I was orignally gonna have a poll of sorts to see who's lose, but I wanted to include each hype-up scene and the one that followed it, so I decided they all win. 
> 
> Plus, Keitaro gets a wee bold in this chapter, giving them a smooch on the cheek when they all win their races. They return the favor when Keitaro has a breakdown after his own race. 
> 
> Man, I thought out the last bit carefully. Keitaro realizes that if he just lets Taiga go, nothing is going to change, so he decides to take the boy under his wing instead. Almost like Keitaro had a premonition of the whole, rivalry in the other routes :P
> 
> Well, my fingers are killing me. I've been writing for three days straight, and I'm itching to upload this and start part 2. In the second part, we'll get to see the aftermath of Keitaro's bet~~
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed it! For updates on Sleepsong and more CB shenanigans, follow me on Twitter @TiraminaFW
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	10. Day 8 (Part 2): The Aftermath

The silence… was deafening. 

Birds chirped in the background, whistling happily as they flew about from tree to tree. The wind was blowing gently, rustling the trees making them dance in the breeze. The water in the pool swayed with the wind, splashing up the sides of the walls and drenching the floor. 

…

What did he say?

The crowd that gathered around Cabin One was left in stunned silence. Jaws dropped. Eyes were buggy. They all stared at the center of the ring in disbelief. 

Did he say…

At the center, Keitaro stood only a few centimeters from Taiga. His eyes were raised amusingly, and his lip was upturned in a half-smirk. 

Taiga, on the other hand, was staring at him with shock and bewilderment. He was trying to wrap his head around what Keitaro just said to him. 

The race was over. The bet had been won. Taiga was now at the mercy of Keitaro, forced to do whatever the brunette had in mind. He expected something, embarrassing; something that would put him to shame for the rest of his life. 

He wasn’t expecting…

“Wha… what did you say…?” He whispered, his voice cracking. 

Keitaro smiled brightly, “You heard me. Pack your bags! You’re bunking with me!”

He did say it. 

Seto dropped his water bottle, the cap in his other hand, the contents spilling out onto the grass below. Felix held his hand up to his lips, holding back a gasp. 

Eduard and Lee were too stunned to move, much less say anything. Eduard’s knees quaked in shock while Lee’s glasses fell clean off his face. 

Behind Keitaro, his cabin-mates were rocked to their very core. 

Hiro’s jaw dropped as he stared at Keitaro with confusion. Yoichi had crushed the water cup that was in his hand as soon as Keitaro had dropped the bombshell that was his side of the deal. Hunter was holding his cheek, fanning himself as he tried not to faint. And Natsumi was holding onto Hiro for support, feeling his knees go weak. 

“I… you want me to… wha-”

“I know, I know. It seems really… petty when you think about it. But, if I just had you apologize, I know you wouldn’t have meant it. And if we just go our separate ways, our relationship will only get worse. I can’t say how I know, but I just have this… feeling in my gut. And my sister told me to always trust my gut! So, for my side of the bet, I want you to bunk with me for the rest of the term!”

Taiga’s eyes seemed to shrink with bewilderment as a result of his explanation. 

But before he could respond, Keitaro smiled, reaching out to pat his shoulder.

“Now I know this might be a lot to take in, so I’ll let you gather your thoughts. In the meantime, I want to get yourself ready to move in!”

Taiga choked on his words, “But-wait, you can’t expect me to-”

“Ah, ah, ah! What was that you said at the beginning? No take-backs? Yes, I do believe that's what you said,” Keitaro interrupted, smirking almost devilishly. 

Taiga’s arms fell to his side. 

Keitaro smiled, stepping forward and wrapping his arm around Taiga’s shoulder, making the red-head wince. 

“You wanted me to do my worst, right?”

Taiga gulped. 

“So, _ I did my worst~ _ ”

_ “PSSST! KEITARO!” _

The emerald-eyed boy turned to the sound of his name, seeing Hiro standing a little ways from them, his head low as he whispered. 

_ “A word?” _

Keitaro chuckled, noticing the hiss in the voice, but paying no mind to it. He slapped Taiga on the back, who coughed at the gesture. 

“I expect to see your stuff in our cabin by the end of the day! See you later,  _ roomie~ _ ”

Keitaro let Taiga go and spun on his heel, skipping over to Hiro. Once he got close enough, his friend snatched him by the wrist and marched him over to the rest of their group. 

Keitaro braced himself for the explosion. 

The crowd quickly dispersed, clearing themselves away from the screamfest that was about to take place. 

Hiro stopped him in front of the group, spun around, and seized Keitaro by the shoulders. He took in a deep breath. 

“WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING??!!”

Keitaro recoiled at the volume of Hiro’s voice. He was expecting this. He knew they’d have some rather harsh words for him once he made his bet clear. He’d just have to roll with it. 

“Now I know that may have seemed extreme-”

“YA THINK!!? You want that pompous ASSHOLE to bunk with us?! Are you out of your mind!!??” Yoichi screeched, grabbing Keitaro from Hiro and shaking him wildly. Keitaro reached up and grabbed his wrists. 

“N-Now hold on guys, let me explain-”

“This is a  _ really _ bad idea, Keitaro! Taiga HATES us!” Hunter cried, jumping onto Keitaro’s back. 

“Now just a sec-”

“And will the scoutmasters even allow this? Yeah, we have four bunk beds with only five beds occupied, but will they allow a sixth?” Natsumi grabbed fistfuls of his hair, pulling on his head with agony. 

“The beds are what you're worried about?! What if that douche doesn’t something to-”

“ _ EXCUSE ME!” _

Keitaro sighed heavily, drawing in his breath and shouting over his bickering cabin-mates. They all winced at his volume and turned back to face him. 

Keitaro tenderly removed Yoichi’s hands from his shoulders, dusting himself off and taking a deep breath. 

“Now. If you boys will let me speak, I’ll happily explain my process here. I know this seems like a bad idea on the surface, with Taiga disliking us and all…”

“That’s exactly-”

“AH! I’m not done.”

Keitaro placed a hand over Hiro’s lips when he started talking, silently telling the boy to be quiet, and listen. 

He lowered his hand to his side.

“But, I have good faith that this will work. I know that Taiga was acting unreasonable, but I’m sure we’ll understand him one day. And this is the first step. To spend time with him. I know, I should’ve consulted you guys first, but I knew without a doubt you would’ve told me no. So, I decided that it would be better to ask for your forgiveness, than permission. So, I ask that you forgive me for not asking first. And I also ask that you trust me on this.”

The group went silent, all exchanging looks of uncertainty and fear. 

Hunter spoke up, “B-But… what if Taiga’s mean to us…?”

Keitaro smiled warmly, gently patting his head, “Don’t worry. Taiga will be MY responsibility! I’ll make sure he doesn’t bully you anymore. By the end of the term, he’ll be our friend, I’m sure of it! So all I ask, is that you give me a chance. Give  _ him _ a chance.”

They all went silent again, looked between each other nervously. Keitaro took in a few deep breaths, now nervous about the response he’d get. 

Yoichi sighed. 

“Alright.  _ Fine. _ But he’s staying in  _ your _ bunk! And if that little twerp tries anything, I’ll pound his face into nothing but dust, and you won’t be able to stop me!  _ Capiche?!” _

Keitaro laughed, nodding in agreement, “Alright, alright, that’s fair.” 

The group all fell back into a comfortable silence, Keitaro’s soothing words making them feel just a  _ little  _ better about the whole thing. 

“Well, lookie here!”

They all turned to see Aiden waltzing over to them, a bright smile on his face. 

“The scoutmasters have been observing how your two teams worked together, and I can definitely say they were impressed! You can all sit down, relax, and watch the rest of the sportsfest for now! It’s the other campers’ turn to compete! Calling Cabin Two! Get into your positions!”

As Aiden walked away, Keitaro led his team to their bench, sitting them all down. He decided to tend to their stress after the races and his bomb-drop on them. While the races went on, they watched the other teams while Keitaro gave the four backrubs and such, allowing them to destress. 

He looked around to find Taiga, and saw that the fiery scout, along with Eduard and Lee, were nowhere to be found.

He sighed. 

This was gonna be a looooong evening.

* * *

_ And so the program continued with other teams competing against each other with enthusiasm and sportsmanship. Everyone was cheering and having fun with the special activity Scoutmaster Yoshi prepared. It’s easy to say that the Camp Buddy Sportsfest went better than I could have ever expected! Of course, the weight of the bet did hold heavy down on us. Taiga was now a part of our cabin. I’ll need to talk to Yoshi about it later… _

Cabin Four had just finished their races, the crowd going wild as the rope-climb drew to a close. 

Keitaro smiled, feeling a surge of pride in his chest at how well this whole event had gone. While what happened with his cabin earlier still sat in the back of his mind, he was over the moon that the rest of the camp competed in such clean manners. The plan Keitaro had come up with proved to be a success!

Once the two teams of Cabin Four exchanged handshakes and slaps on the backs, Yoshi cleared his throat, standing up on the podium to gather their attention. 

“May I have everyone’s attention please?”

The whole camp turned to him. 

“This has been a spectacular day for all of us! As your scoutmaster, I couldn’t be prouder of each and every one of you for exhibiting teamwork and sportsmanship. This special activity would not have been possible without all of your cooperation!”

The scouts clapped happily, feeling proud of themselves for the job well done. 

Yuri stepped onto the podium, clearing her throat. 

“But before we all officially conclude this event, we’ve got to clean up the obstacle course together! I’m sure that’s fine with all of you, right?”

While most of the scouts sighed, they decided it was fair to help clean this giant course. Yoshi, however, began to panic, reaching out to grab Yuri’s shoulder. 

“Y-Yuri! They are all exhauste-” 

“It’s okay, Yoshi! You’ve done more than enough. Let the campers help you with the rest at least.”’

Yuri patted his hand, giving him a warm smile. He still felt like arguing, but when he also got a gentle look from Aiden, he backed down. He smiled, “I understand… thanks, Yuri.”

Aiden walked up onto the podium, giving Yoshi a few comforting pats on the back, “Don’t worry, though! I’ll make sure to cook something extra special tonight for all of ya! I’m sure you guys are gonna be super hungry after all that cleaning, not to mention all the running and jumping all day.”

Yuri clapped her hands, “Alright, everyone! Get your cleaning equipment, and let’s tidy this place up!”

The crowd dispersed, all moving to find something to clean. 

Keitaro and his group all smiled happily, glad to hear how well the scoutmasters thought they did with the event. Natsumi let out a long, happy sigh. 

“Looks like the scoutmasters are pleased with today’s activity!”

Hiro bobbed his head in agreement, suddenly draping himself over Keitaro’s back, “Your plan really worked out well, Keitaro!”

Yoichi smirked, lifting his hand to wave it around from the spot where he laid on the grass, “I bet that old man is gonna change his mind about closing this camp!”

Keitaro blushed, rubbing the back of his neck, “Thank you again, everyone. I hope what we did was enough for Sir Goro to reconsider his decision.”

Hunter smiled, reaching out to pat Keitaro’s knee, “It won’t help thinking about it too much… what’s important is that we did what we could.”

The brunette smiled, “Th-That’s right…!”

Natsumi suddenly sprang to his feet, stretching his body out, “Anyway, the day isn’t over just yet! We need to help the scoutmasters clean up! Yoichi, Hunter, Hiro! Could you help me get the cleaning equipment?”

Yoichi groaned, rolling over onto his stomach, “Ugh… do we really have to?”

Hunter walked up to the tall scout, grabbing his shirt, “You should get changed as well, Natsumi. You’re still soaked from your race.”

Natsumi chuckled, remembering his swim and realizing how his shirt was sticking to him uncomfortably. He nodded, “Oh, that’s right! Haha! Let’s go then!”

While the four moved to return to the cabin, Keitaro started walking in the opposite direction. Hunter looked over his shoulder, a brow raised in confusion. 

“Keitaro? Where are you going?” 

They all turned to see Keitaro walking away. The emerald-eyed boy looked over his shoulder, smiling brightly. 

“Oh! Don’t worry about me, I’ll catch up with you guys. I need to go talk to Scoutmaster Yoshi about our newest addition!”

Yoichi’s eyes narrowed, “Ahhh, that’s right. You know what? Let’s clean first, change later. I don’t wanna deal with that twerp if he’s in our cabin!”

“B-But, Yoichi, we-”

“We’re gonna get dirty again anyway! Come on, LET’S GO!”

Natsumi tried to argue, but Yoichi suddenly scooped Hunter and Hiro under his arms and pushed Natsumi forward with his head towards the shed. 

Keitaro chuckled, letting out a sigh as Hiro screeched for his release, and Hunter just stared down at the ground, unable to register what just happened. Natsumi tried to argue still, but Yoichi pushed him along the path until they disappeared behind a nearby building. 

Keitaro turned around and began his short walk to where the scoutmasters were.

Aiden had left to start cooking dinner, and Goro was nowhere to be found. But Yuri and Yoshi had stayed behind, discussing something between themselves. 

When Keitaro got close enough, he cleared his throat. 

“Ummm… excuse me?” 

The two turned to him and smiled. Suddenly, without warning, Yuri jumped forward and lifted Keitaro clean off his feet, hugging the scout tightly. 

“OHHHH! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Keitaro! Your idea was PERFECT! I’m pretty sure Dad will reconsider his decision!”

Keitaro squeaked, coughing as Yuri tightened her grip, squeezing the air out of him. 

“N-No problem, M-Ms. Yuri-! ACK!”

Keitaro choked when Yuri only tightened her hug, squealing happily. Keitaro was about to ask for her to put him down, but Yoshi came to his rescue. 

“Y-Yuri! You’re suffocating the poor boy!” 

Yoshi pulled Keitaro from her grasp, the boy taking a deep breath of air once he was released. Yuri chuckled, rubbing Keitaro’s back. 

“Sorry, dear! I just got excited!” 

Keitaro shook his head, smiling weakly, “I-It’s alright, Ms. Yuri. I understand!”

Yoshi sighed, patting Keitaro’s head. 

“Yuri is right, though. Thank you for what you did, Keitaro. Your plan worked splendidly!” He praised, making Keitaro blush lightly. 

“A-Ah, thank you, Scoutmaster Yoshi!”

The man smiled, giving the boy a few more pats on the head before lowering his hand. 

“So, what did you need, Keitaro?” He asked, now wondering what the boy had come over to speak to them about. 

Keitaro looked down at his feet, suddenly nervous about confessing to their bet. He took in a deep breath, and cleared his throat. 

“U-Umm… so, I wanted to speak to you about this b-bet my team made with Taiga…” 

Yoshi stared down at him with understanding, nodding in agreement, “I see. We’re already aware of the bet.”

Keitaro’s eyes widened in shock, “Y-You do?” 

He nodded, “Yes. Originally, I was going to stop you from making the bet. But, for some reason, Sir Goro stopped me. I guess he wanted to see how it played out.”

Yuri nodded, “That does seem like something my dad would do. So, what did you have Taiga’s team do?” 

Keitaro took in another deep breath, twiddling his thumbs nervously, “I… uhhh… told Taiga to… bunk with me and my friends… for the rest of the term…”’

The two went silent. 

They stared at Keitaro with disbelief, their jaws dropped. Yoshi tried to gather his thoughts, looking around with bewilderment. 

“You… you want Taiga to-”

_ “KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!” _

Keitaro and Yoshi jumped in fright when Yuri suddenly let out a high-pitched squeal. She closed the distance between them and once again, seized Keitaro into a bone-crushing hug. 

“Omgomgomgomg! Taiga is staying with you!? That’s PERFECT!! I can see how you look at him from afar, but still stick to your other lovers!!! Now that you all can live under the same roof??!! AAHHH!!! THIS HAREM IS NOW COMPLETE!!!”

Keitaro blushed darkly, his jaw dropping, “H-Harem?! Ms. Yuri!!??”

Yoshi grabbed Yuri’s shoulders, pulling her off Keitaro. 

“Yuri, come on! Let the boy go!” He snapped, peeling the crazed woman off the scout. 

Keitaro took a few deep breaths, placing a hand on his chest with relief as Yoshi plopped her down behind him, allowing her to get her panic out of her system.

“Anyway, Keitaro. My apologies for snooping on your groups when you made the bet. And if I heard correctly, Taiga will be moving into your cabin now, is that correct?”

Keitaro nodded, looking down at his feet, “Y-Yes, sir. I hope that’s not breaking any rules…”

Yoshi shook his head, “That’s totally fine, as long as everyone is okay with it. Though, that does mean we’ll have to fill up Taiga’s old cabin with more people. We’ll probably move Seto and Felix in with Eduard and Lee.” 

Keitaro rubbed his neck, making a mental note to apologize to Seto and Felix later on. 

Yoshi reached out and patted his head, “But nevertheless, I trust you enough, and I believe that you know what you’re doing! You know what? You get a free pass from the cleanup!”

Keitaro gasped, “What? B-But sir-”

“No buts! Consider it a thank you for what you’ve done. And, take the chance to help Taiga uh, settle in to your cabin before your friends get done!”

Yoshi smiled, looking behind him to see Yuri laying on her side, practically foaming at the mouth. He sighed, shaking his head at the sight. 

“I’m gonna go give Yuri some time to uhh, calm down. You go and rest, alright?” 

Before Keitaro could fight back, Yoshi scooped Yuri up and flung her over his shoulder, marching off towards the scoutmasters’ cabin. 

Keitaro stood in the empty field, pondering what to do. He didn’t want to just leave his boys to do the cleaning themselves. But Yoshi made a valid point. He needed to see what Taiga was doing. He sighed, puffing out his chest, and marching to his cabin.

* * *

Keitaro felt the confidence inside him waver and die as soon as his cabin came into sight. While he hoped Taiga would be welcoming to the bet, he knew that to be untrue. 

He had to prepare himself for the worst. The probability of the boy screaming in his face was very high. 

When he rounded the corner and entered the courtyard, he saw Taiga standing on the porch of their cabin. He was leaning against the wall, a few bags at his side. He hadn’t changed from his uniform, meaning he must’ve packed his things with haste. 

In front of him, Eduard and Lee were speaking rapidly, their body language frantic and panicked. 

“T-Taiga! Yo-You don’t have to do this! It’s so unfair!” Eduard wailed, flailing his arms around. Lee nodded in agreement. 

“Th-That’s right! It’s completely unprecedented that Keitaro should force you to bunk with him and his associates! There’s no reason to go through with this excha-”

“Will you just  _ drop it! _ I’m not gonna chicken out and let that bastard win! So shut your traps and go back to your cabin!” 

“B-But Taiga-”

“Did I fuckin’ stutter?!”

Keitaro sighed, biting his lip nervously. He needed to step in and stop the argument before it got violent. 

Quickly, he crossed the clearing and made his way to the cabin door, plastering on the biggest smile he could muster. 

“H-Hello!”

Eduard and Lee whirled around to face him, their eyes wide with anger. 

Keitaro’s smile dropped immediately when the two advanced on him. 

“You little, vile, EVIL-”

“How DARE you make Taiga bunk with you!!! Was this your plan all along?! To take him away from us to make him you-your-your-s-SLAVE?!?!”

The two immediately began railing into him, Keitaro wincing at their harsh words and volume. There was nothing he could say that would change their minds, or make him seem any better. He just needed to man up and take the verbal assault, and get it over with. 

“I swear to all that’s holy, if you do anything unsavory to Taiga, I-I’ll, I’ll destroy you!”

“Don’t think that after this stunt we’ll ever forgive you!”

Keitaro looked over their shoulders, seeing Taiga stare at them with an unimpressed, and rather… embarrassed look. 

Keitaro held up a hand. 

“U-Umm… i-if I may?”

Eduard and Lee stopped. 

“T-Taiga will not face any harsh treatment while bunking with me, I will assure you of that! N-now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna uhh… show Taiga where he’ll be sleeping!” 

Keitaro quickly ducked between them and raced away, running up the cabin steps. He opened the door and held it ajar, allowing Taiga to follow him in. He gave the two one last nervous smile before shutting the door behind them. 

Silence. 

Keitaro stared at Taiga wordlessly, the scout dropping his bag at his feet. He crossed his arms and said nothing. 

_ This is so awkward!!! _

Taiga slowly scanned the room, observing each space quietly. 

Keitaro smiled nervously. 

“U-Um… w-welcome to our cabin! Uhh… I hope you don’t mind, but the one condition I had with my friends means you’ll be sleeping above me. I-I hope that’s okay…”

Taiga said nothing. 

Keitaro looked down at the ground, his heart hammering in his chest. 

“Uhhh…-”

“Where.”

He lifted his head, “Wh-What?”

“Well? Which bed is yours? They all look the same. I can’t tell who’s who. So? Which one?!”

Taiga glared at him darkly, the fire in his eyes igniting again. 

Keitaro smiled nervously. 

“O-Oh! I’m the one in the left, back corner! You can put your stuff by my bed, i-if you want…”

Taiga picked up his bags and marched across the room, tossing his things into the corner. He looked up at the bunk, his expression unreadable for the first time since Keitaro met him. 

“I-If you want, you can t-take a shower. Our water works well, and w-we have the cubicles for pri-”

“No thanks.”

Taiga took off his shoes, tossing them onto his bags. 

“B-But, won’t you be uncomfo-”

“I said I’m FINE!” Taiga glared harshly at him, his fists clenched tightly. Keitaro held up his hands in surrender. 

“Okay, okay. D-Do what you like then. Get comfortable, settle in, whatever you need. We have plenty of open lockers, clean showers, and a free laundry hamper for you!”

Taiga narrowed his eyes. 

Without another word, Taiga climbed up the ladder and into the bed, burrowing himself underneath the blanket and out of view. 

Keitaro rose a brow. 

“Umm… T-Taiga? Are you-”

“I’m here. Like you asked. Now leave me alone!” 

Keitaro’s jaw snapped shut, seeing the lump wiggle a bit as Taiga tightening his grip on the blanket. 

He wanted to make sure he was fine, but he realized that would only agitate him. He sighed in defeat. 

“O-Okay, I’ll leave you alone then. Just let me know if you need anything, okay?”

No answer. 

Keitaro’s shoulders sagged. He walked back across the room, slowly taking off his shoes. He grabbed a towel from his locker, glancing at Taiga one last time before he walked into the bathroom to take a shower.

* * *

Within the scoutmaster cabin, Goro sat at his desk, his fingers laced together. 

“I’ve gathered you all here today to inform you of my conclusion, regarding today’s event.”

Across the desk, Yoshi, Yuri, and Aiden stood at attention. Yoshi was sweating profusely, his eyes darting around nervously. 

Aiden gently patted his arm, smiling reassuringly, “Hehe. Calm down, Yoshi~”

He smiled weakly, turning back to Goro nervously. 

The older man smiled, sitting up in his chair, “And I’m pleased to announce that this event truly was successful, and exceeded all my expectations.”

Yoshi gasped. 

“What I saw today was the opposite of what happened at last year’s event. It was obvious how carefully and thoroughly everything was planned. The obstacle course was very well constructed, and it was highly interactive without compromising safety. I also noticed the first-aid booth on site. Not to mention the well-thought-out meal for the exhausted campers afterward. Most importantly, I saw how each of the campers worked together as a team to achieve a common goal. This truly exemplifies what the scouts have learned within the past few days. The new recruits of this batch have even been getting along exceptionally well with our older recruits.”

Yuri gasped, smiling brightly at the end of her father’s speech. 

“You seem happy, Dad.”

Aiden nodded in agreement, placing his hands on his hips, “Oh yeah! It’s been so long since I saw Gramps smile like that!” 

Goro narrowed his eyes, “Did you just call me Gramps?!”

Aiden opened his mouth to answer, but Yoshi placed a hand on his chest. He took a step forward, a bright smile on his face, “Th-Thank you so much for your compassionate feedback, sir! I appreciate it!”

Goro sighed, flashing a gentle smile, “You don’t need to thank me. You were the one who made this possible.”

Yoshi looked down at his feet, “I don’t deserve all of these compliments, sir!”

Aiden groaned, rolling his eyes and slapping Yoshi on the back, “C’mon, Yoshi! Isn’t this what we were all working hard for?”

Yuri nodded in agreement, shaking Yoshi’s arm, “That’s right, Yoshi! Keep your chin up! You deserve this!”

Yoshi sighed, smiling nervously with a gentle blush on his face, “Thank you again…”

Goro stared at the three silently, his mind wandering. He hadn’t expected to see this result when he returned. He expected to see this place in ruins, campers unruly, and the scoutmasters unable to control the madness. 

“Heh. This honestly seems way too hard to believe. I almost thought that you’d bribed those boys into putting up a good show for me,” He admitted, leaning back in his chair. 

Yuri huffed, crossing her arms and turning to her father angrily, “Dad! You know Yoshi would never do such a thing!”

Aiden nodded, grabbing Yoshi’s arm protectively, “Yeah, Pops! Yoshi is the most honest and righteous man I’ve ever met!”

While Yoshi blushed feverishly at the onslaught of praise, Goro chuckled to himself. 

“Hehe… I can’t disagree with that.”

Aiden smiled, sitting down on the nearby couch and leaning back to relax. He placed his hands behind his head and sighed deeply, “Besides, I’ve never actually seen the campers work together like that. Did you see their faces all through the activity? They were all laughing and smiling like it was the best day of their lives! You should learn a thing or two from them, Gramps! Smiling actually suits you!”

Goro cleared his throat, his brows furrowing with anger at the comment. He leaned forward and waved them off, “I believe I made my point clear. This meeting is adjourned! You’re all dismissed!”

Aiden chuckled, leaping off the couch. He and Yuri walked out of the office quickly, conversing amongst themselves. 

Yoshi smiled, moving to follow the two. 

“Wait. Stay here, Yoshinori.”

The man stopped, nervousness pooling into his gut. He slowly turned around, “S-Sir…?”

Goro looked at his desk, lacing his fingers together to lean on his hands, “I didn’t want to say this in front of Aiden and Yuri… but I’m sure we both know what happened after that rope-climbing event…” 

“Y-Yes, sir.” 

Yoshi looked down at his feet, now fearing getting scolded by the older man. Goro sighed, “You’re well aware that both Mr. Nagame and Mr. Akatora don’t get along, so why didn’t you stop them from engaging in a bet?”

Yoshi sighed, his hands shaking slightly. He took in a deep breath, moving to sit down in the chair right across from the desk. 

“B-Before I answer your question, sir… honestly, I can’t take all the credit…”

Goro rose a brow. 

“I talked to Keitaro the other night… it was through him that I realized to step up my duties as a scoutmaster, and prove to you that this year’s batch is different. A hopeful and positive influence like him is what the camp has been missing all these years. And on that note, I have faith in Keitaro’s intentions for Taiga with regards to their recent arrangement.”

Goro hummed in thought, mulling over Yohshi’s plight. 

“Let’s not forget that Mr. Akatora is the same boy who jeopardized last year’s event. If we’re not careful, we could be repeating our mistakes with this batch. I’m counting on you to keep your eye on those two, considering the tension between them. We can’t let a few bad eggs bring the camp down again. Understood?”

Yoshi nodded, standing at attention and saluting him, “Yes, sir!”

Goro nodded, “And Yoshinori- don’t get complacent, as this sportsfest is just one success after the multiple failures we’ve had.”

Yoshi’s hand lowered, “S-Sir…” 

Goro smiled, “Nonetheless, it’s a good start.”

Yoshi’s jaw dropped with disbelief. 

The man stood from his desk, moving over to one of the windows to watch as the scouts outside ran around, taking food to cabins, some still in their sportsfest gear. 

“I will extend my stay here at Camp Buddy to oversee your performance. I want to see for myself how you plan to redeem the camp’s reputation.”

Yoshi nodded, saluting him proudly, “Thank you very much, sir! I won’t let you down!”

* * *

When Keitaro finished his bath, his cabin-mates weren’t back yet. 

The sun was beginning to set, the sky changing from red to velvet, to indigo, to dark blue. Keitaro looked around the cabin, fussing with his shirt as he continued to dry his hair. He was getting a little nervous at how long his boys were taking. He knew they'd probably be upset with him once they got back, since he had gotten a free pass from the cleanup. 

He walked back over to his bed, settling down with a satisfied sigh. 

A shift. 

Keitaro looked up, suddenly remembering he wasn’t alone in the cabin. Taiga was right above him. 

He looked down at his feet, silently wondering how to start a conversation with the new roommate above them. He wanted to talk to Taiga, get to know him, and be his friend. 

But before he did, he shook his head to himself. While he wanted to try and have a conversation with the boy, he knew it would be wise to leave him alone for now. He needed at least a day to settle in. It would be best to leave him alone for now. 

Keitaro tussled the towel through his hair, flinging the water droplets onto the floor below him. 

He sighed happily at the warmth of the towel, tucking it to the sides of his face. 

He stood back up from the bed, skipping over to his laundry hamper to toss the towel in. He stretched his arms out, letting his back pop a few times. 

“KEITARO!”

The brunette jumped a good foot in the air. 

He whirled around to see his cabin-mates marching into the room, Yoichi at the front. His brows furrowed angrily, and he advanced on Keitaro. 

“Where the hell did you go?! What happened to helping us clean up?!” He snapped, crossing his arms with a huff. 

Keitaro smiled nervously, bowing to them in apology. 

“I-I’m sorry guys! My conversation with Scoutmaster Yoshi took just a bit longer than I thought. A-Also, he gave me a free pass from the chores so that I could settle uhh… our new member in.” Keitaro looked over his shoulder and gestured to the lump in the bed above his own. 

The four looked up to see, Yoichi sneering angrily. 

“Oh, yeah. I forgot the twerp was bunking with us now-”

“ _ Yoichi _ ! Be nice!” Keitaro gently hit his arm, his brows furrowed with anger. Yoichi shrugged, moving across the room to his bed. 

“What? I’m just stating the obvious!”

Natsumi shook his head, removing his shoes, “Yoichi, if we’re all going to get along, we need to be gentle, alright?”

Yoichi sighed, plopping onto his bed, leaning back against the headboard. 

Hunter removed his shoes, immediately moving to grab his towel from his locker, “Well, I hope you guys don’t mind if I take a shower. I’m really dirty from today’s activities…”

Hiro yawned, picking up his own towel, “I’m actually gonna join you. I’m all itchy and sticky, and it’s annoying.”

Natsumi smiled, picking up his towel, “Yoichi! You need to take a bath too!”

The violette rolled over and flipped him off. 

“YOICHI!”

Keitaro sighed, skipping over to where he was laying, “Come on, Yoichi! Your body won’t be healthy if you don’t take a bath!”

He crossed his arms and huffed. 

Keitaro hummed, raising a brow, “I’ll scrub you down if you do~”

His eyes darted over. Keitaro flashed his biggest and brightest smile, his eyes twinkling.

Yoichi sighed, rolling off the bed and standing up, “Ugh… fine…”

“Yay!”

Keitaro jumped up and grabbed Yoichi’s hand, leading him over to the bathroom entrance. He grabbed Yoichi’s towel and handed it to him, leading the boys into the bathroom. He took one last glance at Taiga’s bunk, and saw a single, crimson eye peeking out from under the covers.

When he looked over, the cover was pulled back down, and Taiga scooted back further against the wall, tightening himself into a ball. 

Keitaro smiled. 

He was really surprised at how complacent Taiga was being. He was expecting a huge fuss over moving into his cabin, angry words, and even violent actions. But all he did was get in bed and hide. 

Keitaro had a feeling that maybe it was because Taiga felt outnumbered. Eduard and Lee had a bigger reaction than he did to the whole thing. He then remembered that Seto and Felix would probably be moved into their cabin, and once more, made a note to apologize. 

Keitaro pushed his thoughts down and led the boys into the bathroom, making sure the hot water was still on. As his cabin-mates began disrobing, Keitaro set up the stools for them. He didn’t get to actually bathe with them, getting impatient with how sticky he felt, but he wouldn’t miss this opportunity to spend time with them. 

“I still can’t believe how well the sportsfest went! It’s been such a long time since we’ve done a big activity like that!”

Natsumi removed his underwear and walked into the bathroom, gushing happily about the activity. Hunter walked in behind him, a nervous smile on his face. 

“Y-Yeah, they all looked super happy. Even Sir Goro. I hope we helped the camp at least a little bit…”

When the two sat down and turned on the water, Keitaro began readying a sponge, filling up a bucket with soapy water. 

“Hey, Keitaro?”

“Hmm?” 

He turned when Natsumi called out to him. 

“Did Scoutmaster Yoshi say anything regarding the activity when you talked to him?”

Keitaro pursed his lips, “Not particularly. He  _ did _ say how proud he was of us for handling everything so maturely. But he was mostly focused on the fact that Taiga would be bunking with us from now on.”

“I still can’t believe you did that.”

Hiro strolled in and sat down, turning the water on and dunking his head under the shower-head. Yoichi followed suit, sitting down next to him. 

“I was not expecting you to say something like that! I figured you’d make him do something lame, like apologize or something!” 

Keitaro sighed, shaking his head. He took the bucket and walked over to Yoichi, dumping the water over his head. The large scout coughed and sputtered while Keitaro squatted down and went to work scrubbing his back. 

“I  _ was _ originally planning on doing that. But like I said, I don’t think it would’ve worked. I’d make him apologize, but he wouldn’t have meant it. I know it’s a big change, and once again, I’m sorry I didn’t consult you guys. But I still think this is the best course of action. Let’s just give him some time to settle in for now. So be nice, okay, Yoichi?” He asked, looking over his shoulder. 

Yoichi huffed, “Why am I the only one you’re asking?!”

Hiro sneered, “Cause Keitaro knows you're a butthead!”

He threw his towel at Hiro’s face. 

Keitaro chuckled, dipping the sponge back in the water. Once he had Yoichi scrubbed, he moved over to Hiro, who yelped in shock. 

“H-Hey, Keitaro?! Wha-”

“I couldn’t take a bath with you guys, so I’m returning the favor! Besides, I think you all deserve a treat for a job well done today! And, a thank you for trusting me to handle Taiga!”

Hiro blushed darkly, turning around to hide his face as Keitaro went to wash his back. 

“I will say, I’m really surprised at how… quiet Taiga is right now…” Hunter admitted, looking at the doorway as if expecting him to walk in. 

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “Yeah. With how he’s been acting, I expected a rather, um, explosive reaction. But, it’s been the opposite…”

Keitaro smiled, “I think he might feel a bit intimidated. He  _ is _ outnumbered now, and he might feel alienated by being a cabin with people he doesn’t get along with yet. But like I said, let’s just give him some time to settle in. He’ll come around, I’m sure of it!”

Hiro sighed, “Wow Keitaro, your endless happiness and patience are truly amazing.”

The chuckled, “Thank you! My sister taught me that patience is your greatest weapon! It can’t be seen, therefore, it can’t be defeated. Your opponent can push and dig and try to tear you down, but if you show an unwavering smile and don’t back down, your enemy will crumble to dust before you even need to fight back!”

Yoichi rose a brow, “Your sister sounds like a badass…”

Keitaro laughed, “She really is! I’d love to introduce you to her someday! She’s really fun, if not a bit… nevermind. I really can’t explain her personality.”

Hunter giggled, “How so?” 

Keitaro sighed, “Well, she owns and runs a local cafe that’s under our house. But she truly prides herself on being a self-proclaimed, ‘party-thrower-extraordinaire’. Emphasis on self-proclaimed.”

Hiro snorted, “Oooo! Keitaro, I’m gonna tell her your talking smack about her!” 

As Keitaro moved to Natsumi, he only laughed, “Do it. I can take her!” 

They all laughed. 

* * *

_ Journal Entry No. 4: July 8th (20:48) _

_ “Hello, Keitaro here! Here’s my entry for yesterday and today! _

_ Well, it was certainly an eventful past few 48 hours. Yesterday morning, I woke up to no one in the cabin, and I decided to have breakfast by myself. When I arrived in the mess hall, I saw Eduard and Lee again… but without Taiga. I talked with them a little and found out how much they looked up to him. They seemed really faithful to him because of how he defended them from bullies before. I wonder what happened? _

_ I also got to talk with Scoutmaster Yoshinori again and found out about the violence and the fighting of last year’s incident. He asked me for advice to convince Sir Goro not to close the camp this year, and I told him that we should all have another team-building activity to prove him wrong about this year’s batch.  _

_ The next day, Scoutmaster Yoshi really did set up the activity! I learned that last year’s violence was caused by Taiga and that this year, we would be competing against him. We made a bet that whoever last would have to do one thing the winning team wanted. And then we competed.  _

_ And to my complete and utter shock, we won the whole thing! Each race, I let each of my boys know how much they meant to me, and that I was there to back them up. And as a result, we won each race! When I got to my own race, they all turned and gave me the confidence I needed to bring our win home. And in the end, I decided to do something that I put a lot of thought into throughout the race. I decided to have Taiga bunk with us for the rest of the term.  _

_ This may seem like a bad idea out the gate, but I truly feel that if we spend time together, Taiga and I can get along. And maybe, my boys will get along with him as well! I’d love to call Taiga one of my boys too… does that sound weird? _

_ Well, despite everything, I feel that the rest of the term is truly going to be one of a kind. I have no idea what’s going to happen now! With Taiga in our bunk, and Goro now staying permanently, I can only imagine how the next three weeks are going to unfold.  _

_ I can’t wait to write about it either! _

_ Yours Truly,  _

_ Keitaro Nagame” _

* * *

Keitaro closed his journal, letting out a small yawn. He placed the journal back underneath his pillow and turned off his lamp, curling under his blankets and snuggling into his sheets. 

_ I wish we could have fun activities like the sportsfest more often! I can’t wait for what the scoutmasters have in store for us! _

He let out another yawn. 

Right before he succumbed to sleep, he felt his bed shake a bit. Footsteps echoed right next to him and moved across the room quietly. He slowly looked over his shoulder, seeing the bathroom light turn on. 

When he heard the sound of running water, he smiled. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part twoooooooo~
> 
> FIRST THINGS FIRST!!!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE GO CHECK OUT @MEOWMINGERZ ON TWITTER!!!!   
> She made some AMAZING fanart for Sleepsong from Day 8 of Keitaro giving his boys their winning kisses!! I starting crying at work cause it was so amazing!!! Go do that! Then come back!!
> 
> Taiga's reaction to bunking with Keitaro is rather... docile. Not what any of them were expecting. Taiga feels a weeee bit intimidated at bunking with his "arch-nemesis". 
> 
> Everyone else of course was shocked at Keitaro's side of the bet, and like in Taiga's route, Keitaro asks them to trust him to handle Taiga. Only this time, they get to watch him handle the fiery thing. 
> 
> The next week is going to be veeeeeery awkward for them all. 
> 
> We also get a nice little scene in regards to Keitaro's sister! She's a huge player in the story, and this won't be the last time we hear of her. While she won't be showing up for a while, I wanted to add more sneak peeks to her character. 
> 
> I also wanted to hint at the relationship between Keitaro and his sister. They love each other dearly, and don't have many issues, but like most siblings, go from "dont breathe in my direction" to "Ill help you hide the body". 
> 
> As for her name? We'll find out later~
> 
> Also Keitaro gives his boys a bath~ And for those wondering about potential naughty scenes, dont you fret, tensions are rise~~~
> 
> Welp, I'm done blabbering. Once again, go check out Twitter for that AMAZING fanart Meowmingerz made! I'm begging you do it if you haven't already. For updates on CB:SS (and other cb shenanigans), follow me on Twitter @TiraminaFW
> 
> And now, we introduce a new feature! PREVIEWS! After each chapter, I'll be writing out a little sneak-peek down at the end, since we've now moved into the real meat of the story. The first eight days are done. Like all other routes...
> 
> Let Keitaro's route begin!!!
> 
> NEXT TIME:   
> Keitaro wakes up feeling a rather... awkward air to his cabin. With Taiga as a new cabin-mate, Keitaro and co. realize this will take far longer to get used to. And when the scoutmasters call them to an activity, and make Taiga join them, what kind of dynamic with this new cabin have? 
> 
> STAY TUNED!!!
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!!!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	11. Day 9: Well This is Awkward

The sun was gently peaking over the horizon. The camp lay still, wrapped in its slumber. A few birds were chirping outside, welcoming the rising sun. 

As the hue of the sky changed from its dark indigo to red, Keitaro hummed happily to himself as he sorted the laundry. 

Moving through basket after basket, he sorted the clothes by size and color, making neat piles into each hamper. As he moved through the cabin silently, he kept an eye out on each bed to make sure he didn’t disturb his cabin-mates, wanting them to sleep in as long as they wanted too. The event yesterday had tuckered them all out. Even he was still sore from the copious amounts of physical activity he was put through. 

Once he had everything sorted, he lifted up a singular basket full of white clothes and slowly moved into the bathroom, wanting to double-check for any clothes that may have been left behind. 

He placed the basket down and moved through the bathroom, looking underneath the benches and in cubicles for any stray socks and underwear. 

He picked up a few socks that he found and tossed them into his basket. He peered into the lockers for any dirty laundry, humming happily to himself. 

When he determined there was nothing more left behind he lifted the basket and strolled out.

_ “Hmm… hmmm… lay down your head… and I’ll sing you a-” _

“Hey.”

“AAAHHHHH!!”

Keitaro squealed in fright when he rounded the corner and came face to face with Taiga. He dropped the basket of clothes and stepped back, leaning against the wall. 

Keitaro clutched his chest, looking up at the red-head. 

The scout was staring at him with a blank expression. He was wearing a soft, loose red shirt with a yellow hood hanging off the neck. To match were a pair of white shorts, the edges colored red. In his hand, Taiga held what appeared to be a white shirt. 

“Hah… hah… goodness gracious, Taiga! You scared me…” Keitaro wheezed, his chest heaving. 

He rose a brow. 

“I’ve been standing here for the past five minutes. You walked right past me.”

“O-Oh… d-did you need something…?”

Keitaro sighed, picking up the clothes he had dropped on the floor. When he stood back up, Taiga held out the shirt. 

Keitaro looked down at the garment. 

“Wha… what is-”

“You’re doing laundry right? And it looks like you dweebs do that color sorting nonsense. So here. They’re from yesterday.”

Keitaro tentatively reached out and took the shirt, unfolding it to see the red Camp Buddy insignia on the left breast. His sportsfest uniform. 

“Ah! I see! Th-Thanks, Taiga! I’ll get this washed right away!”

Keitaro dropped it in the hamper, lifting it up with a huff. 

“If you want, you can drop the rest of your clothes into the piles in the main room! They’ll be washed later!”

“Hm.”

Taiga didn’t say anything. He only hummed and leaned against the wall, stuffing his hands into his pockets. 

Keitaro took a few steps forward, repeatedly looking over his shoulder and back at the scout. 

Silence. 

“Umm… did you… need anything else?” Keitaro asked, nervously looking back at him. 

Taiga shook his head. 

“Ah… okay then. S-See you later!”

Keitaro quickly moved out of the room, desperate to escape the awkward air. He opened the door slowly and moved out into the cool, morning air. He hopped down the steps and moved across the courtyard, hurrying towards the small laundry room that hung off the mess hall. 

When he opened the door, he quickly stepped inside and dropped the basket in front of one of the washing machines, popping the lid open. 

When he dumped the laundry in and turned it on. He placed the basket on the lid and left the room, moving back to his cabin to grab the next basket of laundry. 

He took in a deep breath of air, sighing happily at the sweet scent of morning dew. It made goosebumps ripple across his skin and encouraged him to skip across the courtyard. 

When he re-entered the cabin, he quietly moved across the room again. When he went to pick up the next basket, he slowly looked across the room. 

"Keitaro?" 

He looked up to see Natsumi sitting upright in bed, rubbing his eyes free of sleep. Keitaro smiled. 

"Good morning, Natsumi!" He chirped, picking up the basket he was in front of. 

"You're up early. Did you not sleep well?" Natsumi slowly climbed out of bed, stretching his arms up. Keitaro shook his head, smiling brightly. 

"No, I slept well! I just woke up earlier than usual today," he explained, moving across the room and towards Natsumi’s bed. 

“Well, that’s good. I was worried for a minute that you’d had a rough night.”

Natsumi let out another yawn, looking down at the basket of clothes by Keitaro’s feet. 

“You’ve already sorted the laundry!” He exclaimed, clapping his hands happily. Keitaro nodded, “Yep! And the whites are already in the laundry room! I was going to move the shorts over next!” 

Natsumi smiled, moving across the room to pick up one of the baskets filled with their uniform shirts. 

“I can help you take these over!” He offered, lifting up the basket and moving towards the door, sliding his slippers on. 

“Thank you, Natsumi!” Keitaro chirped, skipping over next to him. They quietly opened the door and slipped out, moving across the quiet courtyard. 

Keitaro hummed happily as they walked, cheerily singing his song. Natsumi rose a brow, the tune sounding familiar. 

“Keitaro? What’s that song you’re humming?” He asked, the brunette looking over his shoulder. 

“Hm? Oh! It uh… doesn’t really have a name. It’s a lullaby my sister would sing to me when we were little. Apparently, my mother composed it.”

Natsumi smiled, “Oh that’s wonderful! My own mother has something like that. But, I think I’ve heard you hum it before… when we were on our first hike.”

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah, I usually hum it to myself whenever I feel nervous or scared.”

“D-Do you feel nervous now?” Natsumi suddenly cried, looking at him worriedly. Keitaro looked off to the side, shrugging his shoulders. 

“Well… a little bit, I guess. I ran into Taiga early, and it was really… awkward…”

Natsumi sighed, “Yeah, it’s gonna be. I didn’t see him around when I woke up, though. Where’s he gone to?”

Keitaro shrugged again, “I dunno. But like I said, it would be best to leave him alone for now so that he can adjust.”

Natsumi nodded in agreement. 

“So, do you think we’ll have an activity today?” Keitaro asked, skipping up the steps to open the laundry room door. He moved aside and let Natsumi move in after him, the bluenette pursing his lips in thought. 

“I’m not entirely sure. Usually, after a big activity like the sportsfest, we have a day off afterward to recuperate. So we might have a day off today to do just whatever we want,” Natsumi answered. 

Keitaro moved to another free washer, dumping the clothes inside.

“Alright, that’s that. Wanna help me hang up these other clothes?”

Natsumi nodded, lifted the basket of clean clothes, “No problem! I love hanging up clothes! It’s a very calming chore!” 

Keitaro chuckled, lifting up the other basket and moving towards the back door.

When the two stepped outside, they were greeted with the rising sun, the sky now beginning to turn that normal bright blue. 

Keitaro skipped across the grass, stopping in front of one of the clotheslines. As he began to hang up the clothes, the two heard a third collection of footsteps. 

“Oh, Hunter! Good morning!”

Keitaro smiled, greeting the small blonde as he groggily walked towards them, still in his blue-bunny pajamas.

Hunter yawned, waving tiredly. 

“Good morning… how long have you guys been up?” He asked, walking over to give Natsumi a tired hug, still half-asleep. The bluenette blushed, returned the hug with an arm. 

“Just hanging up the laundry. Since breakfast won’t be ready for at least an hour, this will pass the time. Wanna help out?” He asked, moving half of the clothes in his basket to a spare. 

Hunter nodded, rubbing his eyes once more. He took the basket and moved to a free line, beginning to slowly hang up the clothes. 

“What have you two been talking about?” He asked. 

“Just whatever was on our mind,” Keitaro answered, hanging up one of the sportsfest shirts. 

Natsumi peered from behind one of the shirts, “I actually just asked Keitaro about that song he hums a lot!”

Hunter looked over at Keitaro, “Oh! I was wondering about that as well. It sounds really pretty.”

Keitaro blushed, “Thanks. My sister often sang it to me whenever I had a nightmare. My mother was the one who wrote it, though.”

Hunter smiled, “That sounds wonderful! What’s your mother like?” 

Keitaro slowly came to a stop. His gaze fell to his feet.

“I… I don’t know what she's like. She passed away when I was born.”

Hunter and Natsumi gasped. 

“Oh my- Keitaro, I’m so, sorry! I-I didn’t-”

“No, no, Hunter, it’s okay! You didn’t know,” Keitaro placed the shirt he was holding down and walked over to the panicking blonde. He gently grabbed Hunter’s shoulder, lowering his head to look into Hunter’s eyes. 

“Don’t be upset, alright? I may not have known my mother, but talking about her doesn’t hurt me at all. So you didn’t hurt me in any way, okay?” Keitaro cooed, gently lifting Hunter’s head. 

Hunter sniffled, nodding, “O-Okay… I’m sorry…” 

Keitaro smiled brightly, “Don't worry about it, hun~. So, Natsumi, you said your mom had a lullaby she sang?” 

Natsumi nodded, “Yeah! A lot of her songs were passed down in our family, and they’re all mostly ocean-based.”

Keitaro rose a brow, “Ocean-based?”

“Yep! Our entire family comes from Okinawa, and most of my aunts and uncles are all swimmers in some way, including my parents!”

Hunter smiled, “What are your parents like if you don’t mind me asking…”

Natsumi shook his head, “No problem at all! My mom’s name is Yoko and my dad’s name is Masami. My mom is a competitive swimmer, and my dad a synchronized swimmer. They met when their two teams had to share the local pool due to bad weather. My dad tried to pull off some fancy dive I think, but he slipped on the board and hit his head, falling into the pool unconscious.”

Keitaro gasped, “Oh goodness, was he alright?”

Natsumi nodded with a smile, “Yep! It was my mom that dove into the pool to save him. When he came to, Dad told me he thought he had died, because he’d seen an angel. He was really grateful to my mom, and the two were inseparable after that!”

The two smiled, “Aww, that’s so sweet!”

Natsumi nodded, “Yeah. Me and the rest of my siblings were all born on the island as well. My older brother, Naoto. Myself, and my two younger siblings, Takumi, and Ami. They’re twins by the way. We lived down there for most of my childhood, but when my brother soared through highschool and graduated two years early, we moved here to Nabu so that he could attend a high-level college while still being close to each other.”

Keitaro hummed, “Wow! How long ago was that?” 

Natsumi pursed his lips, “I’d say about… nine years ago? My brother graduated at sixteen and started college at seventeen. We’ve lived here ever since.”

Hunter hung up another pair of shorts, “Do you ever miss Okinawa?”

Natsumi nodded, “From time to time, I do. I was really young when we left, and didn’t understand why we had to leave. But it was for my older brother’s sake, so I don’t mind.”

“You sound like you look up to your brother quite a bit,” Hunter added, smiling gently. 

Natsumi nodded, “Yeah! My brother is amazing! He’s super talented and succeeds at everything he does. I try every day to be like him!”

Keitaro smiled, “Is that why you do so many chores?”

Natsumi nodded, “Indeed! I want to prove that I can be just like my brother! I wanna make my parents proud, and give my younger siblings someone to look up too like Naoto is for me!”

Keitaro smiled, hanging up the last shirt in his basket. 

“That’s really sweet of you, Natusmi! But don’t strain yourself too much, okay? I don't want you to overwork yourself,” Keitaro replied, a bit sternly. Natsumi chuckled, nodding in understanding. 

“Don’t worry, Keitaro! I won’t!”

The brunette smiled. 

“Well, I’m gonna go drop the baskets off at the cabin. I can smell food from the mess hall, so breakfast might be ready. I’ll go wake up Yoichi and Hiro and… see if Taiga’s still around…”

Hunter looked down at his feet, “I saw him buried under his blanket when I woke up. He hasn’t left since yesterday…”

“I actually ran into him this morning. He may have been going to the bathroom, he actually handed me some of his clothes to wash-”

“OH! That’s who these belong too then!”

Natsumi suddenly shouted, holding up a garment for the other two to see. 

“I was wondering who owned these, since I hadn’t seen them before. So they’re Taiga’s…”

Keitaro cocked a brow, walking over to Natsumi to see him holding-

“Is that… underwear?” Hunter asked, looking at the clothing. 

Natsumi nodded, “Yep! It’s called a jockstrap, Hunter!”

Hunter furrowed his brows, looking at the cloth with uncertainty, “It looks so tight and uncomfortable though… why would Taiga wear something like this…?”

Keitaro blushed, turning away so that he wouldn’t stare. He coughed into his hand. 

“W-Well, jockstraps are really good at holding your umm… privates in place, hehe… and it's really breezy towards the backside too…”

Hunter blushed darkly, “O-Oh…”

Keitaro nodded, “I used to wear them back when I played baseball in middle school. They’re actually more comfy than they look!”

Natsumi chuckled, “I assume you like it when the breeze hits your butt. Maybe you should wear them too, Hunter- you have a nice butt and I think jockstraps would suit it~!”

Hunter’s blush darkened. He let out a squeak with embarrassment as he reached behind him to cover his rear, “N-Natsumi! Th-That’s embarrassing!”

Keitaro laughed, reaching out to pat Hunter on the shoulder, “I think Natsumi just wants to be proud of yourself, Hunter.”

Hunter looked down at his feet, trying to hide his blushing cheeks. Keitaro chuckled, “Well, I’m gonna go wake up our troublemakers. Meet us at the mess hall?”

Natsumi nodded, “Will do! We’ll see you there! So Hunter, about what I said-”

“NATSUMI!!!”

Keitaro laughed heartily as he trotted away, hearing Hunter squeal as Natsumi teased him. 

He moved across the courtyard, seeing scouts stirring from their cabins and making their way towards the mess hall for breakfast. He skipped across the yard and back to his cabin, opening the door slowly to peer inside. 

Yoichi and Hiro were still sleeping soundly. And has Hunter stated earlier, Taiga was curled up underneath his blanket, hiding. 

Keitaro pursed his lips, silently pondering over whether he should try and pull him from bed. 

He slowly crept across the room, moving to his bed and peer at the top bunk. 

“Ummm… Taiga? Are you awake…?”

…

A squeak. 

Keitaro snorted, covering his mouth and squatting down by his bed, his shoulders shaking. 

_ Taiga snores like a kitten! _

Keitaro fell onto his back, trying to regain control of his breathing. He slowly rolled over and crawled to his knees, moving over to Yoichi’s bed. 

He took in a few deep breaths, leaning on Yoichi’s bedside. He held out a hand and poked Yoichi’s side. 

“Yoichi… wake up!”

The violette grunted, rolling over in his bed, turning his back to Keitaro. The brunette huffed, moving to his feet. 

He rolled his shoulders.

Keitaro jumped up and threw himself over Yoichi, the other coughing as the breath was knocked out of him. 

“ACK! Wh-What the fuck?!”

Yoichi looked up to see Keitaro laying across him, a bright smile on his face, “Breakfast is ready!”

The violette huffed, glaring at Keitaro. 

“What the hell, Keitaro… ya trying to kill me or something?” He whispered, pushing on Keitaro’s face. 

Keitaro giggled at the touch, rolling across the bed and back onto the floor. 

“Come on, Yoichi! Breakfast is ready in the mess hall!” 

Yoichi frowned, grabbing Keitaro’s wrist with a huff. He suddenly yanked on Keitaro’s arms, pulling him back down onto the bed and against his chest. 

“Wha-Y-Yoichi!?” Keitaro cried, suddenly locked to the buff scout’s chest. Yoichi rolled back over, trapping Keitaro underneath him. 

“Nnnnnope. I wanna sleep…”

Keitaro blushed, squirming under his weight, “Y-Yoichi! C-Come on, we need to go eat!!”

Yoichi smirked, lifting his head and pressing his lips to Keitaro’s ear.

“Come on~ let’s just stay here… we can have some fun if you want~” He purred, rubbing Keitaro’s chest intimately.

The boy swallowed thickly, his jaw shaking in anticipation, “I-I uhhh…”

“KEITARO!!!”

A third voice erupted across the room. Keitaro tried to lift his head, but Yoichi kept him pinned. All of a sudden, a third body threw itself on top of them. 

“LET GO OF KEITARO, WOLFBOY!!! THE HELL YOU TRYING TO DO!?”

Keitaro looked up to see Hiro on top of Yoichi, trying to pull his arms off of him and set him free. He did so, to no avail. Yoichi’s grip was firm and unmoving, and the violette only stuck his tongue out. 

“First come, first serve, Torch-head. Fuck off…” He almost sung, curling into Keitaro even more. Hiro screeched angrily, pushing his feet into the bed and pulling on Yoichi’s bicep even more. 

The emerald-eyed boy could only sigh in response, not seeing a way out of his predicament. He looked up at the neighboring bunk, seeing the lump that was Taiga squirm with annoyance. 

He sighed once more, looking over his shoulder. 

“Guys-”

“Get off, Torch-head! I’m not letting go!”

“H-Hey-”

“Not till you released Keitaro, you perverted dog!”

“Ummm…”

“HA! Just try it!”

Keitaro pursed his lips, his voice not reaching them. He wanted to raise it more, but he didn’t want to disturb Taiga anymore than he already had. He racked his brain, weighing his options and thinking of ways to grab their attention. Yelling wouldn’t work, neither would stern words. 

Then, something clicked. 

Keitaro smiled, clearing his throat gently and looking over his shoulder. 

_ “Boys~?” _

The noise came to a screeching halt. 

Keitaro smiled, using his best purr and sweetest tone he could to grab their attention. The two warring scouts stared at him with wide eyes and flushed faces. He smiled. 

“Now that I have your attention, I’m rather hungry and would like to get something to eat. Would you boys care to join me?”

He flashed his best smile, a warm tingle on his cheeks. 

Hiro smiled brightly, nodding his head, “O-Of course, Keitaro! I’d love to!” 

Yoichi huffed, “Yeah, sure, wh-whatever…”

Keitaro’s smile widened, “Great! Now, Yoichi, if you would?” 

He nodded, sitting up and letting go of Keitaro, who stretched his arms up. He flung his legs over the bed, smiling at the two. 

“Now, let’s go about this quietly. Taiga is still asleep, and I don’t wanna anger him by waking him up,” Keitaro explained, grabbing their hands and pulling them to their feet. 

Hiro sighed, “I forgot Taiga was here… that just ruined my morning…”

“Hiro!”

“Whaaaat?! Come on, Keitaro! Even you can’t be blind to how he’s treated us this past week!” Hiro whined, pouted like a scolded child. Yoichi yawned, still half asleep as Keitaro led them to the bathroom. 

He pushed them to their lockers, moving to his own to get dressed. He opened up the door and pulled out his uniform shirt, hanging it up on the door. 

“Hiro, we talked about this. I know you guys are untrusting still, but I’d like you all to just try and give him a chance. I’m not asking you to be buddy-buddy with him on the first day, this will take some getting used to, okay?”

Hiro sighed, lowering his head in defeat, knowing his words wouldn’t reach Keitaro. 

“Hah… I know I can’t argue with you…”

Keitaro smiled, leaning into Hiro’s side. 

“Don’t worry, Hiro. If Taiga does anything, I’ll take care of it, okay?” 

Hiro nodded. 

Looking to his left, he saw Yoichi standing there quietly, looking like he was sleeping. Keitaro sighed, “Yoichi, come on, wake up!”

He stepped over to Yoichi’s side, poking the scout in the arm. He got a snore in response. 

Keitaro sighed once more, opening up Yoichi’s locker and taking out his uniform. He cracked his knuckles and grabbed Yoichi’s shirt, lifting it over his head in a smooth motion. 

Yoichi yelped, squirming around in shock when he came to, shirtless. 

“Ah-what the- Keitaro!”

But he didn’t receive a response. Keitaro instead went to remove the boy's shorts, tossing both garments into the nearby hamper. 

“Keitaro, what the hell! I can dress myself!” Yoichi snapped, reaching for his shirt. 

When he took it and tried to take it back, Keitaro’s grip on the uniform tightened. He looked down at Keitaro with disbelief, the boy approaching him and moving his arm out of the way with surprising strength. 

“You’re more asleep then you are awake, so I figured I’d help you out!” Keitaro chirped, pulling his uniform shirt over Yoichi’s chest, buttoning halfway. 

“H-Hey-”

“Wolfboy!”

Yoichi turned to Hiro, who shook his head. 

“Just let it happen. Keitaro’s gone into ‘mother-hen-mode’ and is now invincible. So unless you wanna be pinned to the ground, I suggest you give up.”

Yoichi turned back around, watching Keitaro pull out his shorts for him with a sweet smile.

He decided to take Hiro’s advice for once.

* * *

The mess hall was filled to the brim with scouts. If the sun hadn’t stirred them from their slumber, the smell of breakfast certainly had. Many were still in line, piling different foods onto their plates excitedly. 

Keitaro strolled into the mess hall with a smile, tugging Hiro and Yoichi behind him. He’d tried one last time to get Taiga up, but to no avail. The red-head turned out to be quite the heavy sleeper. 

He led the two through the crowded room, standing on his toes to look over the other scouts' heads, searching for Natsumi and Hunter. 

“Hmmm, now where are they…?” Keitaro whispered, glancing from table to table. 

“Oh, they’re in line, Keitaro!” 

Hiro pointed over to the wall, pointing out their two missing companions chatting to each other while the line moved along. 

Keitaro happily skipped over, dragging the two tired scouts behind him. He weaved through the small crowd and flashed a bright grin. 

“Hey, boys! Brought our sleepyheads!” He chirped, waving Hiro and Yoichi’s hands. Natsumi smiled, taking a step back and offering a space for them. 

“Come on, cut in front of us real quick!” He offered, Hunter moving aside to let them cut in. Keitaro winced at first not wanting to make the people behind them wait too long, but Hiro and Yoichi pulled  _ him _ along, stepping in line before he could make any kind of argument. 

“How did you two sleep?” Hunter asked, grabbing a small pile of trays from the cart and handing one to each of his cabin-mates. 

Hiro smiled, “I slept like a baby! After running that race yesterday, my muscles were basically dead!”

Yoichi nodded, “Same here. Not only did we all run marathons, but we had to do that cleanup as well…”

Keitaro smiled nervously, looking down at his feet with embarrassment, “Sorry that I dropped out on you guys…”

Natsumi shook his head, patting Keitaro’s shoulder from behind, “Don’t worry, Keitaro! Scoutmaster Yoshi gave you a free pass to help Taiga settle in, so there’s no hard feelings!”

As Hiro began to pile food on his plate, he grimaced at the sound of Taiga’s name, “Speaking of you-know-who, how did he take to coming to our cabin? I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him since he stormed off after your race yesterday.”

Keitaro nodded, “He’s been keeping to himself. I heard him get up last night to shower once we all went to bed. And I saw him this morning standing by the bathroom. He gave me a bit of his laundry then disappeared. When I came back from hanging up the clothes to fetch you two for breakfast, he was back in bed, asleep.”

Yoichi snorted, “Heh, twerp’s probably scared of us!”

Hunter nodded, “I’d actually agree with you. He might feel intimidated by our presence.” 

Once the five had gathered their food, they moved to an empty table, sitting down to eat their breakfast. 

“As I said, let’s give him some time to adjust. So let’s give him some spa-”

“Keitaro!”

The brunette twisted around, jumping at the sound of his name. 

He was met with Yoshi, walking towards them with who else, but Taiga in tow. The crimson-eyed scout had his hands stuffed in his pockets and kept his eyes on the floor, his brows furrowed with anger. 

“Sorry to disturb you boys so early this morning! We’ll be having an activity after breakfast, and I wanted to make sure your entire cabin was accounted for. You all were up when I came in to, well, wake you up, except Taiga here!”

Keitaro looked behind Yoshi, nervously peering at the scout in question. 

Silence fell over the table. 

Keitaro cleared his throat, “Ah, th-thank you, Scoutmaster Yoshi! Taiga, you can sit over here if you’d like?”

“Tch.”

Taiga sneered, but when Yoshi looked at him sternly, he moved across the space and sat down, his back turned to them all.

Yoshi nodded happily, oblivious to the tension now in the air, “Perfect! You boys enjoy your breakfast, I’m gonna go and prepare our exciting activity! It’ll be a nice, easy one to work as a cool down from our big event yesterday!”

Before they could ask him what it was, the older man saluted them and walked off, disappearing into the kitchen. 

Keitaro sighed, nervously looking back to Taiga. 

He licked his lips, “Umm… s-so… how’d you sleep?”

…

“Fine.”

“Ah… that’s good. Are you uhhh… gonna get any breakfast?”

“...No.”

Keitaro’s lips snapped shut. 

He looked down at his plate, unsure of how to carry on the conversation, if you could even call it that. 

Silence. 

_ This is so awkward… _

Natsumi coughed awkwardly, his eyes darting nervously, “S-SO! Um, Keitaro! I wanted to uh… ask you something!”

Keitaro sighed, turning to the bluenette with a relieved smile, “Sure, Natsumi. Go right ahead.”

“Thank you. I actually wanted to ask about your sister. You’re always talking about her, didn’t you say that yesterday, she owned some kind of cafe?”

Keitaro nodded, “Yep! Morningwood Cafe! And no, Yoichi, that is  _ not _ a euphemism-”

Yoichi put his hand down with a pout. 

“-She opened it up when she was seventeen. Our house is located on top of it and she owns and runs it to support herself and I.”

Natsumi rose a brow, “All by herself? Does she have employees?”

Keitaro nodded, “A few. They mostly consist of her friends, and they aren’t actually full-time ones either.”

Hunter frowned, leaning forward worriedly, “But how did she open a cafe so young?”

Keitaro sighed, “She got permission from the local government to do so as a way of making us financially stable without government assistance.”

They all went quiet. 

Taiga gently looked over his shoulder, a brow cocked with curiosity. 

“Government assistance? What does that mean?”

Keitaro looked down at his plate, “My sister was the one who raised me. For a while, she needed help when it came to funds, but now that she's an adult, she no longer needs the extra money since she has the cafe.”

Hunter tilted his head, “I know you said your mother passed away, but what about your fa-”

“Hunter!” 

Before Hunter could finish his sentence, Hiro’s hand shot across the table and covered his mouth. The blonde squeaked in confusion, but when he looked at Hiro, the boy’s face was one of fear. 

He silently shook his head. 

Keitaro rose a brow, wondering why Hiro stopped Hunter from asking his question. When he withdrew his hand, Hiro smiled nervously and turned back to Keitaro, “H-Hey, Keitaro! You should tell them about that one time your sister had to kick someone out of your cafe!” 

Yoichi snorted, “She did what?”

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah, my sister is super welcoming, but every once in awhile, we’ll get a bad customer. One time, this man came in super drunk and started causing a ruckus. My sister asked him to leave, but he just stumbled around screaming about random things. She eventually had to force him out. The bad part was, he smashed a bottle over her head. The good part, she broke his back and tossed him into the street with one arm, all while a piece of glass was lodged in her forehead.”

Taiga snorted. 

Keitaro looked over at the red-head, whose shoulders were clearly shaking as he stifled his laughter.

Yoichi laughed, nearly choking on his drink, “Holy crap, your sister sounds like a badass!”

Keitaro nodded, “Yep! She’s super sweet and really funny, but cross her once and you’ll find your spine rearranged and you’ll be walking sideways for the rest of your life.”

Natsumi winced, “Oh my. That sounds… rather violent…”

The brunette chuckled, “Don’t worry, Natsumi. As long as you don’t give her a reason to bite, she won’t!”

A loud whistle sounded outside. 

“Oh! That’s the scoutmaster call for assembly! Is everyone done with their breakfast?!” Natsumi cried, suddenly leaping from his seat. 

Keitaro nodded, pushing his now empty tray away. 

“Alright! Come on, guys, let’s go! We don’t wanna be late!”

“Ugh, why are you panicking?” Yoichi groaned with disinterest as Natsumi hurriedly gathered their trays. 

The group began to rise from the table, moving over to throw trash away and make their way towards the door. 

Keitaro stopped and turned around, seeing Taiga still sitting at the table. 

“Taiga, you coming? I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

…

“Maybe we can convince them to let you sit out? If you’d like?” 

Taiga peered over his shoulder, glaring harshly. But Keitaro held his gaze, knowing while Taiga needed time to settle in, he still needed to interact with the boy if he had any hopes of making a bond. 

The red-head sighed, and begrudgingly stood from his seat, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

Keitaro smiled, turning around to follow his group with Taiga now in tow. 

Things were off to a good start!

* * *

“Good day, scouts! We have an exciting activity for you guys today! As you may have already noticed, Aiden and I have been testing out the waters on Buddy Lake!”

Yoshi was standing proudly on the pier, announcing the contents of the activity. The scouts were standing around in small groups, most of them looking worn out from the sportsfest just yesterday. 

Aiden continued, “We've had some great catches today! The fish are biting like crazy, so don’t you guys wanna catch your own too?”

Yoshi nodded, “That’s right! We figured that it would be nice to continue our productive streak by doing this fun activity after our successful sportsfest event!”

“We only have a few fishing rods though, so you guys are gonna have to partner up!” Aiden gestured to the small box of fishing rods, only seeing a little over a dozen. 

Yoshi smiled, placing a hand on his chest, “This is a great opportunity! Being in pairs will strengthen your bond with your fellow campers! As soon as you are paired up, come see me for your bait and rods!”

With that, the scouts were dismissed. Keitaro clapped his hands excitedly, bouncing on his feet. 

“Oh wow! Going fishing sounds really fun, don’t you guys think?”

Hiro nodded happily, “Yeah! I’ve gone fishing a few times when I’ve wanted to catch live fish for some dishes of mine!”

Yoichi sighed, “Are you kidding me? We have to sit in a boat for like, a thousand years just to catch a stupid fish. Just jump in the lake and catch them with your hands!”

Hiro sneered, “That’s not how you fish, Wolfboy! Only savages fish like that!”

Natsumi stepped in-between them, placing a hand on their chests, “Now, now, guys. Like not get too heated with this! This could give us all some time to get to know each other by pairing up! Yoichi, wanna be my partner?”

Yoichi stuck out his tongue, “Ugh, no thanks. If I partnered up with you, you’ll give me an inquisition of the, I don’t, ten rules of fishing!”

Hunter chuckled, “I didn’t think you’d know a word like 'inquisition', Yoichi.”

The large scout sneered. 

Hiro jumped up, raising his hand excitedly, “Oh, oh! Keitaro, wanna partner up with me?! It’ll be like old times, with you and I fishing!”

Keitaro smiled warmly, but shook his head, “That’d be nice Hiro, but I was actually thinking of pairing up with Taiga.”

Silence.

The entire group stared at him like his head had popped and rolled away. 

“Y-You, what?!” Hiro gasped, dropping his arms sadly. 

Taiga stared at Keitaro with disbelief, unsure of how to process the statement. Keitaro nodded. 

“Yeah, I wanna take this chance to try and get to know Taiga a little more. But we can put our boats near each other so we can still talk, so we’d all still be together!”

Hunter hummed with uncertainty, “Are you sure that’s a good idea, Keitaro?”

He nodded, “I know you guys are still nervous around him, and I don’t want Taiga to be alone for the activity and feel left out!”

Suddenly, a sharp hiss sounded behind him. 

“I don’t your  _ goddamn _ pity!” 

Keitaro whirled around to face Taiga, who was now glaring at him darkly. He shook his head, “I-I’m pitying you, Taiga! I just wanna team up with you for the activity, that’s all!”

Natsumi smiled, “Don’t worry, Keitaro! We’ll be alright! You and Taiga can take some time for yourselves. I wanted to partner up with Yoichi anyway!”

Yoichi’s jaw dropped, a gentle blush on his face, “Wha-What? Why me?!”

Natsumi’s smile only widened, “I think it would be fun for the two of us! Come on, let's go get our rods and our boat!”

“H-Hey- I didn’t-”

And with that, Natsumi dragged Yoichi away. 

Hiro sighed, turning to Hunter, “Looks like Keitaro’s made up his mind. Wanna team up with me, Hunter? I can show you how to fish!”

The blonde nodded, smiling gently, “I-I’d like that Hiro… I’ll pair up with you.”

He nodded, “Great! We’ll be off then. But I’m watching you Taiga! No funny business!!”

When they walked away to get their boat, Keitaro sighed with embarrassment, “Ah, I’m sorry about that, Taiga! I told them to give you space, but they won’t give you a chance!”

Taiga snorted, “Tch. They wouldn’t be of any use anyway. Either they have no idea what they’re doing, or they’d talk my ear off and scare the fish. At least you can be useful in some way.”

Even with the clear insult, Keitaro smiled gleefully, “Th-Thank you, Taiga! Shall we go get our things?!”

Taiga looked up and winced, the shine in Keitaro’s eyes caught him off guard. 

“U-Uh…”

“Oh! But I should let you know… I’ve never actually gone fishing on my own before.”

Taiga’s jaw dropped, “What the… you’re even worse!”

But the boy didn’t back down “I-I can try to make this activity fun for you, at least! I know some of the basics!”

Taiga raised a skeptical brow, “Tch… how do you know if you’ve never even done it before?”

Keitaro smiled, “From a TV show! Super Jirou’s friend is a pretty good fisherman!”

But Taiga only sighed, “You really are an idiot… let’s… just go get the damn bait!”

“A-Ah, right!”

Keitaro skipped away, retrieving their rod and bait from Yoshi. He took their supplies and found a free boat, beckoning Taiga to join him.

The hesitant scout stepped into the wobbly boat, grabbing onto the sides. Keitaro smiled, pushing them out a bit into the water, putting distance between them and the pier. 

Natsumi and Yoichi were a few meters away, Natsumi explaining every detail of fishing he knew, all while Yoichi lounged in the back of the boat, clearly asleep. 

Hunter and Hiro weren’t far off. The small scout was listening to Hiro intently as he showed him how to put the bait on the hook and showed him how to properly cast the line. 

Keitaro smiled as he watched his boys bond. He’d almost forgotten about his own activity, until he heard a grunt of frustration. 

He looked over his shoulder to see Taiga struggling with their fishing rod, trying to tie the bait to the string. He furrowed his brows. 

“Ummm… T-Taiga? Do you need help-”

“Shut up. I don’t need your help! I know how to fish. Do I look dumb to you?!”

Keitaro hummed, “A-Are you sure…? W-We are a team after all…”

Taiga scoffed, “It’s just this stupid worm! I can’t tie it without it wiggling too much!”

Keitaro looked down at the hook laying next to Taiga. 

“H-Have you set up the hook…? You can just attach the worm there…”

“Wh-What? No.”

Keitaro smiled, “You need to add a hook at the end of the line. You can just out the worm there so that when the fish takes a bite, it will get caught on the hook.”

Taiga blushed, his hand tightening into a fist, “I-I know that…! Why didn’t you tell me there were hooks provided?!”

Keitaro rubbed his neck, “W-Well, it’s right where you got the rods… I thought you saw it too.”

Taiga crossed his arms, “Hmph! Since you know so much about this, why don’t  _ you _ do it?!”

Keitaro chuckled, “Alright, Taiga.”

He took the rod and the worm from Taiga, fastening the hook onto the string. He picked up the bobber and clipped it onto the string, sticking the worm onto the hook. 

Taiga tightened his lips, watching intently as Keitaro readied the fishing rod. 

“There you go, Taiga! I’ve attached the bobber and the hook along with the worm.”

He took the rod, looking at it skeptically, “So is this ready to use now?”

“Yep! You should be able to cast it now, I think…”

Taiga lifted the rod and dropped the hook into the water, right next to their boat. Keitaro pursed his lips, raising a brow. 

“Umm…”

“So now I just have to wait, right?”

Keitaro hummed, moving a bit closer to Taiga, “W-Well, you can’t just drop it in front of us, there aren’t many fish in shallow areas. You should cast it a little bit further; you’ll have a better chance of getting a bite.”

Taiga blushed again, pulling the hook out of the water, “Of course, I-I know that!!”

Keitaro hummed. 

_ This makes me wonder if Taiga really knows how to fish or not… _

He smiled, scooting closer to Taiga. He reached over and eclipsed his hands over Taiga’s, “Here, let me show you how to cast!” 

Taiga snarled, pulling his hand away from Keitaro angrily, “GRAH! Get away from me, you loser! Why do you think I can’t do it?!”

Keitaro shook his head, holding his hands up in surrender, “N-No, I-”

“And since when did you know how to fish?! You said you’ve never done it either!”

Keitaro weakly tried to reach out, “I-I was just trying to help…”

Taiga growled, turning to the water with anger, “I don’t need your help! I’ll show you how to cast this thing!!”

“T-Taiga, wait-!”

The scout tossed the rod behind him, his lip curled back in anger. He suddenly threw the rod forward, violently casting the line forward. The boat rocked back and forth wildly, and Keitaro seized the side of the boat. 

“W-Wait-T-Taiga-!”

“A-AGH!!”

Taiga tipped the boat, suddenly losing his balance. He cried out as he was thrown from the boat, flipping over the edge and into the shallow water with a loud splash. 

Keitaro gasped, moving to the side of the boat to peer over the edge, “T-Taiga, are you okay?!”

Taiga lifted his head, coughing and sputtering. He snarled, rubbing the back of his head, “Do I look like I’m fucking okay?! I’m soaked in freaking filthy water!”

“I-”

“GRRR! This is all your fault, Keitaro!! You knew this was gonna happen, so you tricked me to cast my line so hard that I’d fall!”

Keitaro reeled back, shaking his head wildly, “Wh-What?! N-No, I didn’t mean to make you trip!”

A few boats rowed over to them. Keitaro looked over to see the rest of his team approaching them. 

“Guys? What happened?” Natsumi cried, exiting his boat and climbing onto the pier. 

Taiga snarled, shaking his head free of the water, “Your stupid friend made me fall into the lake!”

Hunter winced, stepping onto the pier and hiding behind Natsumi, “Oh dear…”

“Pfft, more like Keitaro cooled down that hot head of yours.”

Yoichi snorted, staring down at Taiga with a sly smirk. Hiro climbed out of his own boat, sniggering at Yoichi’s comment. 

“Hahahahahaha! Good one, Wolfboy!”

“Shut up, Torch-head.”

“Khh-” Taiga winced, his cheeks flushing darkly with embarrassment as a small crowd gathered to stare at him. 

He looked genuinely upset, making guilt swell up in Keitaro’s chest. 

“AHHHH!! TAIGA!!”

They all looked up to see Eduard and Lee quickly rowing their boat towards Taiga. Eduard leaned over the edge, his brows furrowed with concern. 

“OMG! Taiga, are you okay!? What did this  _ idiot _ do to you!?” He showed, looking up to glare harshly at Keitaro. Lee crawled across the boat, trying to reach for Taiga. 

“I knew letting Taiga join their cabin would only lead to disaster! They’ve made him into their own personal  _ jester _ !”

Keitaro moved to the edge of the boat, looking down with shame and guilt. 

“C-Calm down, everyone… clearly, this was an accident…” Natsumi held up his hands, trying to calm the newcomers. But Eduard only turned on him, snarling angrily. 

“Accident my ass! For all we know, Keitaro here  _ pushed  _ him into the lake!” 

Keitaro gasped, shaking his head wildly, “W-Wait, no! I didn’t push him-”

“LIES! Are you saying Taiga threw  _ himself _ into the lake?!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Well, this twerp does explode pretty easy… I bet he was throwing a tantrum and fell on his own! HA!”

Hiro nodded in agreement, “And besides, Keitaro would never do something like that!”

Natsumi stepped to the edge of the pier, “Taiga, you can head back to the cabin and change into something dry. You might catch a cold…”

Taiga snarled, letting out a raged-filled scream and moving to his hands and knees, “AAGHHH! All of you are the fucking worst!”

Keitaro saw him struggled to stand up, and moved to the edge of the boat and reached out to him, gently grabbed his arm, “T-Taiga, hold on-”

“Don’t fucking touch me, you idiot!!!”

Taiga ripped his arm from Keitaro’s grasp, but the force of his pull rocked the boat and caused Keitaro to lose his balance. 

He yelped in fright, flailing his arms about to try and to save his balance. But when the boat rocked again, he flipped over, tumbling head-first into the lake with a loud splash. 

“WAH!”

He was momentarily submerged and heard a collection of voices call out to him. Regaining his sense of balance, Keitaro planted his feet on the sandy bottom and pushed up. 

When he broke the surface, he immediately looked for Taiga, only to see that the boy had fled. Eduard and Lee were calling after him, Yoichi looked ready to chase after him. 

“Get back here you runt-”

“Yoichi, no!” 

Natsumi stepped in front of him, holding his arms out. Hiro snarled, stepping behind Yoichi, “We can't let him get away with this!”

Natsumi shook his head. 

“Both of you calm down! Instead of charging at him, we should focus on helping Keitaro first!” 

Hunter dropped to his knees, leaning over the edge of the pier, reaching his hand out to Keitaro. 

“H-Here, Keitaro! G-Grab my hand!”

Keitaro accepted the hand, pushing himself out of the lake with Hunter’s help. When he settled on the pier, Hiro rushed over to him, falling to his knees and grabbing Keitaro’s face, inspecting him like a fretting mother.

“Keitaro! Are you okay?! Anything broken?!” 

He shook his head, gently caressing Hiro’s hand, “N-No, I’m fine. Just wet.”

Natsumi pulled out a small towel, handing it to the soaked boy, “Here, Keitaro. You can use my handkerchief.”

Yoichi scoffed, “Yeah, nice try Mr. Perfect. As if a handkerchief is gonna be enough to dry  _ that _ !”

While Keitaro dabbed his face dry, Natsumi nodded in agreement, “That’s right! Let me go get you a towel real quick!”

But the brunette shook his head, handing the cloth back to him, “That’s alright, Natsumi. I can just go back to the cabin and dry off there, instead.”

“B-But that’s probably where Taiga went. Is going there a good idea? H-He might make a scene…” Hunter fiddled his hands together with worry. 

But Keitaro stood up definitely, shaking his head, “It’s alright, Hunter! We don’t need to make a fuss after the sportsfest went so well. And besides, it was partially my fault that that happened…”

Hiro snarled, grabbing fistfuls of his hair, “I can’t believe you're letting Taiga get away with hurting you like that!”

Yoichi nodded, “Yeah, I’m with Torch-head on this one! That twerp’s head is way too far up his ass today, it’s pissing me off!”

Before he could go on, Natsumi stepped up, placing a hand on his chest, “I get what Keitaro is saying though. Telling the scoutmasters won’t change anything, it’ll just make Taiga angrier.”

Hiro’s jaw dropped, “What?! You’re letting him off the hook too, Natsumi?!”

He shook his head, “N-No, of course not! But I do see where Keitaro is coming from, I think we should trust his intentions with Taiga…”

Hiro dropped his arms to his sides, “What are we supposed to do then? We can’t just let this happen over and over again!”

“G-Guys, I promise it’s not a big deal! It was just an accident! Taiga looked really embarrassed, so it makes sense for him to react like that.”

Hiro sighed, “But he looked pretty embarrassed yesterday when you gave him your bet. And he was all quiet about it! What happened to that!?”

Keitaro shook his head, “I think the shock-factor might be over for him. It took him a while to actually process what’s happened, and now that it's sunken in, he’ll probably act like… well, himself again.”

Hiro let out a loud ‘harrumph’, crossing his arms, “Hmph! That still doesn’t give him a free pass to act however he pleases!”

Keitaro prepared to argue back, but Natsumi gently grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back, “A-Anyway, Keitaro… let’s get you dried off quickly. The scoutmasters will be here in a minute and if they see you all wet, they’ll ask what happened.”

Keitaro nodded, taking a few steps away, “I can go clean myself up. If the scoutmasters see too many people gone, they might think we’re up to something. Please cover us while we’re gone!”

Hunter nodded, “O-Of course, Keitaro!”

He smiled, “Thank you, boys! I’ll see you back at the cabin then!”

Keitaro smiled, giving the boys a small bow. He turned around and trotted off, leaving the rest of his cabin mates behind to stall for them. 

He sighed heavily, ringing his shirt out as he went. He removed his shoes and socks as he walked, grimacing at the feeling of the water in his shoes. 

When he walked up to the cabin, he looked around nervously, expecting to see Taiga outside, or even Eduard or Lee outside. 

But when he saw that the coast was clear, he moved into his cabin. He skipped up the stairs and slowly opened the door. 

He peered in slowly, nervous to see if Taiga was in the room. 

Nothing. 

He let out a sigh, stepping in slowly and closing the door behind him. He placed his shoes on the rack and tossed his wet socks into the nearby hamper.

He slowly undid his tie, sighing in defeat at the failure of the activity. 

“I was so close to having a fun activity with Taiga… I wonder where he ran off to? Hah… I’ll just go take a shower before I get sick…”

He slowly walked into the bathroom, slowly unbuttoning his shirt as he went. He opened his locker, pulling out his towel. Remembering the hamper in the shower room, he decided to wait to completely strip. 

He let out a yawn, stepping into the shower room to see-

“W-WAHHH! T-Taiga! You’re naked!!”

He walked in to see Taiga standing at one of the open showerheads, lathering his body with soap. He whirled around at the sound of Keitaro’s voice, his face a deep scarlet. 

“What the hell?! Ever heard of knocking, you idiot!?” 

Keitaro covered his eyes, a deep blush spreading over his cheeks, “Y-Yes, I have! B-But why are you here?!”

Taiga huffed, turning back around, “Not sure if you’re blind or just really stupid! I’m taking a shower, what else would I be doing in here?!”

Keitaro shook his head, his lip quivering in tandem with the twitch in his pants, “I-I mean, w-why are you out here?! I thought you’d be in a cubicle at least…!”

Taiga only snorted in response, “I don’t like taking my showers in those tiny cubicles. It’s way too cramped for me.”

“O-Oh…”

Silence. 

The two stared at each other silently, a pregnant pause hanging in the air. 

…

“Well? Are you just gonna stand there? You’re here to wash up too, right?”

Keitaro stuttered, “A-Ahh… b-but… a-aren’t you made about what happened a while ago…?”

“Save your breath, I don’t want to talk about it. I’m here to chill. So don’t even bring that topic up again, you dumbass.”

Keitaro nodded, “W-Well… either way, I just want to say I’m sorry… but like you said, let’s just leave it at that.”

Silence. 

“A-Anyway, I’ll leave you alone and take a shower later when-”

“Quit being a fucking baby and just do it now. This is  _ your _ bathroom, isn’t it?! This is the problem with you. You always act so selflessly. It’s annoying. If you want to do something, just do it! Don’t adjust to everyone. They won’t care back as much as you think!”

“...”

**_Keitaro… don’t change who you are for others. If they don’t love you for you, that’s their loss. You shouldn’t bend and twist and break yourself to please other people. You. Are. Enough. Remember that, my dear little brother…_ **

Keitaro looked down at his feet, the words of his sister ringing in his mind. Taiga’s words were so similar, if not a bit harsher. 

He took in a deep breath, nodding in agreement, “I-I see… w-well, I hope you don’t mind me showering here too then.”

Taiga rolled his eyes, “Whatever. I’m about to get done and rinsed off anyway.”

Keitaro nodded, nervously, and awkwardly stripping down. He removed his sticky, damp uniform and tossed it into the hamper with Taiga’s. Without a word, he moved up and turned on the shower next to him, trying to calm his racing heart. 

As he dipped his head underneath the faucet, he couldn’t control his eyes from glancing at Taiga’s nude figure. 

_ This feels really weird… I can’t believe I’m taking a shower with Taiga… I mean… I took a shower with my boys the other day, but with Taiga, it feels really different… _

His lip quivered. 

_ I have to admit… when I was alone in the shower, I wondered what it would be like to take a shower with Taiga. I never thought it would actually happen... now he’s literally right beside me, completely exposed… _

His eyes glazed over Taiga’s figure, watching the individual water droplets cascade through the crevices of his every muscle.

_ With all that water running down his body, the soap slowly washing away, revealing his lean and chiseled body… _

He gulped. 

_ Not to mention the steam that’s barely blocking his- _

“HEY!”

Keitaro jumped, looking up at Taiga, who was staring right at him. 

“My eyes are up  _ here! _ What the fuck are you staring at?!”

Keitaro’s voice caught in his throat. What should he say?! Should he lie and say nothing? Taiga would see right through that! But if he was honest, he’d most certainly get punched in the face.

He was at a crossroad. Lie and be caught? Be honest and die?!

“...Y-Your thing… d-down there…”

Why did he say that?

_ I’m fucked. _

“What the…?”

Taiga’s eyes went wide, and his pupils shrunk to the size of pin-points. 

_ Crap! That really slipped out of my mouth! This is bad, Taiga’s gonna think I’m a total pervert! _

“Why the hell would you be staring at that, you creep?!”

Keitaro covered his eyes, shaking his head with desperation, “G-Gah! I didn’t mean to! I just got distracted!”

He waited for the blow. He deserved it. Creeping on his new cabin-mate was not the way to welcome him. He braced himself for the impact. 

“You really are an idiot, aren’t you?”

Keitaro peeked from behind his fingers, surprised at Taiga’s disinterested tone. The boy was only staring at him, a judgemental brow raised. Keitaro looked down at his feet, his face bright red. 

“I-I’m sorry… I guess I was just lost in my own thoughts…”

“If you’re still thinking about that shitshow earlier, I’m gonna smack you.”

“N-No, I’m not! I promise…!”

Keitaro smiled nervously, “Actually… I feel relieved that you don’t mind me taking a bath with you.” 

Taiga rolled his eyes, “Tch. It’s not like this is the first time I’ve taken a bath with someone, so it doesn’t bother me.”

Keitaro smiled nervously, looking down at his feet, “But this might be the first time we’ve ever done something relaxing together…”

Taiga sighed, groaning loudly in annoyance, “Ugh. I swear every time you open your mouth you’re either complaining or saying cheesy shit like that.”

Keitaro looked off to the side with embarrassment, “I-I’m just saying that it feels nice to spend time with you… today was a long day after all…”

Taiga only huffed, picking up the showerhead to rinse his hair more thoroughly, “Not sure how you consider fishing ‘hard’ but whatever.”

“A-Ah… s-sorry…”

Taiga slammed the showerhead back down on its holder, suddenly turning on Keitaro to face him completely, his arms crossed angrily, “ARGH! Why are you even apologizing, you dumbass?!”

Keitaro said nothing. He wasn’t sure why he was. Every time Taiga seemed angry with him, he felt like he had to apologize for whatever made him that way. It was a habit of his he’d been trying to break for over a decade. 

“Ugh… you are so annoying…” 

Taiga turned back around, rinsing his back. 

“I-I’m really confused, Taiga… I don’t know what to say…” Keitaro whispered, twiddling his thumbs together. 

Taiga only shrugged, “Don’t ask me! How should I know?!”

Keitaro took in a breath-

“GRRH! Screw this! I don’t know why I’m even wasting my time with you in the first place! Is this what it’s like living with you?! I’m outta here!”

Taiga turned off his faucet angrily, dropping the sponge into the nearby rack. He spun on his heel, making his way to leave before-

“SSS- _ SHIT!!” _

He spun too fast. 

Taiga’s foot slipped out from underneath him, and his face went from anger to panic in a split-second. Keitaro gasped, dropping his sponge to reach out and catch him. 

But he fell too fast. 

“T-Taiga-WAH!”

The red-head slammed into Keitaro, knocking the wind out of him and off-setting his balance. With nothing to grab a hold of, the two tumbled and came crashing down to the watery ground below. 

“AHH!” Keitaro cried out when his head hit the floor, his teeth rattling. Taiga grunted when he fell on top of him, trying to regain his balance. The movement had spilled the contents of a conditioner bottle, making the floor extra slippery, and preventing Taiga from finding any grip to pull himself up. 

“Owowowowow….” Keitaro reached up and grabbed his head, rubbing it softly to soothe the pain. Taiga continued to try and pick himself up, but only fell back on top of Keitaro again, his face in his chest. 

Keitaro burly opened his eyes, wincing at the ringing in his ears. 

“T-Taiga…? Are you o-okayyyyy…”

Keitaro’s voice drowned out and died and he looked down to see Taiga sprawled out on top of him, brows furrowed. 

Taiga looked up in response to his voice, only for his eyes to widen in shock. A large blush overtook both of their faces at the awkward, and rather intimate situation they’d found themselves in. 

Keitaro could feel  _ everything _ . Taiga’s entire body was pressed into his. The heave of his chest as he breathed. The warmth of his skin. The twitch of his muscles. The softness of his-

“G-Get offa me ya c-creep!” Taiga cried, squirming to find a grip. Keitaro only stammered back, “Y-You’re the one on top of me! I can’t move till you do!”

“I-I’m trying but the fucking conditioner’s making the ground too slippery-”

“THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING TO KEITARO!!!”

As if things couldn’t get any worse, Keitaro’s entire frame froze in fear at the sound of Yoichi’s voice. He looked over to see his entire cabin standing in the doorway, gawking at the sight before them. Hunter had covered his eyes, turned away in embarrassment. Natsumi’s jaw dropped as he looked on, trying to find something to say. Hiro’s eyes were narrowed in anger, and Yoichi was standing at the front, fists clenched and ready for a fight. 

“G-GUYS! I-IT’S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!! W-WE JUST S-SLIPPED!” Keitaro screeched, kicking his feet frantically. 

Taiga had frozen with fear, completely surrounded with nowhere to go.

“First he pushes you into the lake now he’s trying to fuck you!? You can’t leave this brat alone for FIVE MINUTES can we!?” 

Yoichi advanced on them, cracking his knuckles. 

“Y-Yoichi, WAIT-”

The violette grabbed Taiga by the back of his neck, ripping him off of Keitaro in one, smooth motion. 

Taiga squeaked in surprise, flailing around as Yoichi slung him over his shoulder and marching him out of the bathroom. 

“WHAT THE FUCK!!! PUT ME DOWN, YOU HOOLIGAN!!!”

Keitaro slowly sat up, rubbing the back of his head. Hunter cast a towel over Keitaro’s waist, moving behind him to hold him up. 

“Are you alright, Keitaro? Did you hit your head?” He asked, rubbing Keitaro’s back. The brunette nodded. 

“Y-Yeah… but I’m okay, it’s just a little bump…”

Hiro reached out and helped Keitaro to his feet, making sure the towel was secured to his waist. Keitaro winced as he stood up, his head throbbing a bit from the blow.

“Let’s get you to your bed, Keitaro. I can get you an ice pack from the mess hall if you want!” Natsumi offered, opening the bathroom door and leading him back into the main room. 

“I-I’ll be alright, Natsumi. I just need to lay down for a bit…” 

The three led him into the room. Hunter moved forward to fix up Keitaro’s bed, but not before stopping and looking at the top bunk. 

Yoichi was leaning against Keitaro’s bed frame, his arms crossed with a huff. In the top bunk, Taiga was wiggling around, wrapped up in his blanket. However, it looked like there was a tiny knot near the top of the bundle. 

“Um… Yoichi? Is Taiga…?”

“He’s in time-out.”

“THE FUCK YOU MEAN ‘TIME-OUT’!?? UNTIE ME YOU SON OF A-”

“PIPE DOWN!”

Keitaro heaved a sigh, grabbing his towel to keep it up. He removed himself from Hiro and Natsumi's protective grasps and walked across the room, closing the space between him and his bed. 

Hunter moved back, expecting Keitaro to lay down. But they all gawked in shock when he instead climbed the ladder on the other side of the bed, climbing into Taiga’s bunk. 

Taiga looked over, his lips drawn back in a snarl. Keitaro said nothing. He reached up and untied the little knot Yoichi had made, pulling the blanket off of Taiga and setting him free. 

“Keitaro? What are you-”

_ “Enough.” _

They all reeled back. 

Keitaro moved to the edge of the bunk, swinging his legs over. He crossed his arms and looked down at the cabin, his face full of disappointment. 

“Boys, I understand this is hard. What happened earlier was an  _ accident _ . What happened just now, was an  _ accident _ . Not everything bad that happens to me is Taiga’s fault. I know it’s gonna be hard to adjust, but it doesn’t seem like you boys are trying.”

“B-But Keita-”

“Eh. I’m not done.”

Hiro’s jaw snapped shut.

“I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this, but it seems I have no choice. I guess we need to set up some ground rules for this to work. Taiga?”

The red-head winced, a bit frightened at Keitaro’s sudden commanding tone. 

“I know living with us will be a bit difficult, but I’d like you to give us a chance. You don’t have to be out friends right out the gate, but I want you to at least… think about it. Can you do that for me?” 

He flashed a gentle smile, making Taiga’s heart pound against his ribcage. What was  _ with _ this boy? He was dumb one moment, then scary the next! Taiga didn’t know how to respond, so he shook his head. 

Keitaro smiled, “Great! And, boys?”

The four looked up at him nervously.

“No more picking on Taiga. Just because he’s bunking with us, doesn’t mean you get to make fun of him all the time now. He’s a bit nervous, and we’re  _ not _ gonna take advantage of that. You boys wanna prove we’re not like last year? This is  _ not _ the way to do it. I want you boys to try and get along.”

They all looked down in silence. 

Keitaro hummed, “Hmmm, how about this? If this arrangement doesn’t work by the end of the week, Taiga can go back to his old cabin.”

They all gasped. 

“Before anyone says anything, I want you all to still  _ try _ . That means you too, Taiga. So no more making fun of each other, threatening one another, anything like that. Am I clear?”

Silence.

“...I’m waiting~”

“O-Oh! Y-Yes!”

“Definitely!”

“Uh-huh.”

“Yeah. Sure. Whatever.”

“...”

“Taiga?” Keitaro looked over his shoulder, smiling warmly. 

Taiga looked down at his lap twiddling his thumbs together. 

“R-Right… whatever…”

Keitaro clapped his hands together happily, “Great! So, tomorrow I want us to try this again, without the excess hostility! Now, I’m gonna get dressed and grab an ice pack. Also, I need to swing by Seto and Felix’s cabin and apologize to them. They got moved because of my bet. I’ll be back in a bit!” 

Keitaro hopped off the bunk and skipped over to the bathroom. 

He stopped. 

He slowly turned around, smiling gently at all five of them.

“And boys? Try… for me.”

He flashed them a gentle smile, making all of them blush. 

Keitaro nodded, turning and disappearing into the bathroom. 

The four looked up at Taiga, wondering if they should try to engage in a conversation with him. Taiga looked down and narrowed his eyes. 

“What are you lookin’ at?” 

They groaned. 

This was gonna be a looooong week. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ta-daaaaaaaa!!!!
> 
> Day 9 is here! This one was actually a bit harder to write than I first anticipated, which is why it took longer.
> 
> As I said at the beginning of the story, we will NOT be having any time-skips, so I'll be writing each and every day, including the days before the beach, and during the fundraiser. 
> 
> So lets take about today, shall we?
> 
> So, with Taiga sharing their cabin, there's a BUTT ton of tension between him and the rest of the group. So much, to the point that Keitaro realizes that time alone wont be enough, and he might have to be a little more forceful than previously anticipated. Dont worry, he doesnt get mean, just sternly tells everyone to stop trying to kill each other for five minutes. 
> 
> And, he's given Taiga a week grace period. If Taiga's unhappy after a week, he can go back to his own cabin! Wonder how that will turn out? 
> 
> I decided to base this day off of Taiga's day 9, with the clothes scene, the fishing activity, and the rather awkward shower scene. Not only does Keitaro embarrass himself, he gets crushed under Taiga. Not that he was complaining really~ 
> 
> Poor boy probably had a crisis and died afterwards~
> 
> And, we get more family info not just from Keitaro, but Natsumi too! Yes, Masami and Yoko Hamasaki are my personal ocs for Natasumi's parents. And he always "siblings", so I figured he had more than one, so, I have him two younger twin siblings, Ami and Takumi. 
> 
> We also hear more of Keitaro's family. He was actually raised by his sister? His mother passed away having him, and his father???
> 
> Well, that's a different story. 
> 
> And in case you were wondering, the "Morningwood Cafe" is actually a nod to the visual novel "Full Service" another game I really enjoy~
> 
> Welp, I'm done blabbering for today! I hope you enjoyed Day 9!!! 
> 
> NEXT TIME:  
> After a rather disastrous first day, Keitaro urges everyone to wipe the board and try again. And what better way, then a badge-earning activity? When Yoshi and the other scoutmasters give everyone an oppurtunity to earn their own badges, Keitaro takes the chance to learn more about his boys, and give Taiga a chance to get to know them too. What badges will they earn? And what will they learn about each other?
> 
> STAY TUNED!!!
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!!!!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	12. Day 10: Getting to Know You

“Attention!”

The lights in the cabin were turned on, the blinding flash making Keitaro curl into his blanket protectively. 

Yoshi had stepped into the cabin, turning on the lights and calling out to the scouts within. Natsumi immediately sat up, as if he wasn’t sleeping just seconds ago, and clapped his hands loudly. 

“Everyone, please wake up! The scoutmaster has an announcement!”

Keitaro let out a gentle yawn, slowly pushing himself up from the mattress. 

“Mnnn…” Hunter rubbed his eyes, sitting up slowly. 

Keitaro sat up, yawning again, “Huh? What’s going on, Natsumi?”

Yoshi smiled, walking to the center of the room to answer Keitaro’s question, “Good morning, everyone! I’m here to make an announcement for today’s activity but…” 

He looked around, counted heads sitting up in bed. 

“Err… where are Yoichi and Taiga?”

Natsumi sighed, slowly climbing out of bed. He moved in-between Yoichi and Taiga’s bunk, clapping his hands even louder. 

“Guys, get up!”

Yoichi groaned, kicking his blanket off angrily, “Damn it! What the hell do you want?!”

Natsumi shushed him, waving his hands around, “Y-Yoichi! You shouldn’t talk like that in front of a scoutmaster!”

But Yoshi only chuckled, shaking his head, “It’s alright, Natsumi. I know Yoichi isn’t a morning person.”

A light snore was heard. 

They all looked up at Taiga’s bunk, the scout undisturbed by the commotion. Natsumi cleared his throat. 

“Taiga! Scoutmaster Yoshi is here! Wake up!” 

Another snore. 

Natsumi sighed, “How is he sleeping through this?”

Keitaro chuckled, slowly climbing out of bed. He moved to the end of the bunk, carefully searching the blanket. 

He smiled. 

Keitaro slowly reached up, tucking his hand underneath Taiga’s blanket. He fished through the cloth, blindly searching for his target. 

He stuck his tongue in concentration. 

“Keitaro? What are you-”

“AAHA!”

Suddenly, Taiga shrieked. His legs flew up the bed as he curled into the fetal position, clutching his feet. 

“The fuck are you doing?!” He shouted, glaring daggers at the brunette, who only smiled in return. 

“Scoutmaster is here to announce something! I don’t want you to miss it and get in trouble, but you weren’t waking up!” He chirped, smiling happily. 

Taiga gawked at the boy, rubbing his feet like they’d been wounded.

Yoshi chuckled, crossing his arms, “Well, now that everyone’s up, I want you all to get dressed and head to the campgrounds for today’s activity! I’ve planned something extra-special for everyone this morning!”

Natsumi saluted the man, nodding in understanding, “Yes, sir! I’ll have everyone ready to go and out by the campgrounds in just a few minutes!”

Yoshi nodded, “Thanks, Natsumi! I’ll head over to the other cabins and wake everyone else up!”

Natsumi gave him another salute, nodding proudly. 

With that, Yoshi left, leaving the cabin to prepare itself. 

Yoichi groaned, rolling over onto his stomach and tucking his face into his pillow, “Ugh… what lame activity does that scoutmaster have planned for us now?!” 

Hiro yawned, rubbing his eyes sleepily, “I wanna go back to sleep…”

Keitaro sighed, grabbing Hiro’s hands to pull him out of bed, patting his cheeks to wake him up, “Come on, guys! I’m sure whatever Scoutmaster Yoshi has planned will be lots of fun!”

Natsumi smiled, nodding in agreement “Keitaro is right! How about we all just follow scoutmaster’s orders and get ready for the day?”

Hiro sighed, lazily trudging over to the bathroom. He grabbed Yoichi’s hand as he went, pulling the large scout out of bed, “Ugh… come on, Wolfboy. You know they’re not gonna let us go back to sleep…”

Instead of hissing at the touch like he usually did, Yoichi only sighed, “Fine… you guys are such a pain in the ass.”

The two sombered out of the room, disappearing behind the wall and into the bathroom. 

Keitaro chuckled, shaking his head at their antics. He looked up to see Taiga climbing down from his bunk, his eyes narrow with annoyance. When he touched down, Keitaro gave him a bright smile. 

“Good morning!”

Taiga only stared. 

Hunter and Natsumi exchanged nervous glances. They were still worried about Taiga’s behavior since the boy had done nothing to make any genuine progress with them. But after Keitaro’s stern talk with them last night, they didn’t want to say anything out of place in favor of angering Taiga, or worst case, Keitaro.

Hunter stepped up, his hands shaking with nervousness, “S-So, T-Taiga…”

He turned to him. 

“H-H-How’d you s-sleep?”

Taiga stared, his expression unreadable. 

Hunter immediately regretted his decision, wanting to turn around and hide behind Natsumi. 

“...Fine.”

Keitaro’s smile brightened, practically glowing at the lackluster exchange. 

_ Progress!!! _

“Well then! Shall we go and get ready for the day?” He asked, gesturing to the bathroom. 

They nodded, leaving the bedroom and filing into the bathroom one by one. 

When they got in, Hiro and Yoichi were wrestling on the ground, fighting over who knew what. 

Keitaro sighed, “We can’t leave you two alone for five minutes, huh?” 

He skipped over to the two, grabbing the back of their shirts and pulling them apart. The two squawked in surprise, getting set on the bench in one fluid motion. 

The brunette smiled, “Do you boys need help getting ready?” 

They shook their heads. 

Keitaro smiled, clapping his hands, “Good! I really hate it when I have to help you two. I don’t want to seem too bossy with either of you…”

Hiro shook his head, “N-No, Keitaro, it’s okay! You’re just looking out for us, that’s all!”

Yoichi only snorted. 

The six hurried and got dressed, idly talking about what their activity could be or about dreams they’d had. Taiga stood toward the back, getting dressed silently. 

Keitaro took notice of his stand-offish demeanor. He smiled, taking a few tentative steps in his direction. He hung his shirt on his locker door. 

“How are you this morning, Taiga?” He asked. 

A hum in response. 

Keitaro looked down at the floor, “I’m sorry that yesterday was so rough… I should’ve expected it-”

“Ugh. What did I tell you?”

The room went silent. 

Keitaro looked up, “Wh-What?”

Taiga turned to him, his eyes hard, “Stop apologizing for things that aren’t your fault. It wasn’t your fault that yesterday was so shitty, so stop apologizing. If anyone blames you, that’s their problem. It’s getting annoying.” 

They all stared at Taiga with awe. Was he… giving Keitaro advice?

“B-But-”

“No buts! For fucks sake! Did you tip the boat? No. I did. I overshot my cast. Are you the one that slipped? No. I did. I turned too fast. Are you the one that made a big deal over me living here? No.  _ They _ did. And you aren’t them. So stop apologizing for shit that you had nothing to do with-” He jabbed Keitaro in the forehead, “-It’s fucking annoying!”

Keitaro rubbed his head but was smiling nonetheless. 

Yoichi rose a brow, leaning in towards Natsumi. 

_ “Is he making fun of him, or… giving him genuine advice?”  _

Taiga slammed his locker door shut. 

“Consider it  _ both _ .”

Taiga set his emblem on his tie, turning on his heel and marching out of the bathroom, leaving the rest of the cabin in bewilderment. 

Keitaro felt his heart pound in his chest, a gentle blush overtaking his cheeks. 

_ That’s the nicest thing Taiga’s ever said to me! I hope today goes well!!! _

* * *

“Alright! Now that everyone is assembled, I want you all to listen up. We have something special planned for today!”

With the morning still fresh, the scouts had gathered in the courtyard begrudgingly. Most of them were still half asleep, rubbing the tiredness from their eyes as Yoshi began to announce the contents of their activity for the day. 

“After the spectacular reception of the sportsfest, I wanted to keep our streak going with yet another engaging activity!”

_ “Isn’t that what he said yesterday?”  _

_ “Shhhh!” _

Yoichi rolled his eyes at Yoshi’s proclamation, only to be shushed by Natsumi. 

“We’re going to have a badge-earning activity!”

Keitaro smiled brightly. 

“I have here a list of possible badges you can earn! Each of the badges corresponds to certain tasks or good deeds you have to do in order for you to earn them!” Yoshi pulled a small book out of his pocket, waving it around for all the scouts to see. 

Aiden smiled, “Yoshi has been working on these extra-special badges just for you guys!” 

He nodded in agreement, “Ah, yes! These badges are carefully hand-crafted, definitely one of a kind! You campers don’t have to worry about the category of the tasks since I’ve made sure we’ve got a badge for each of your varying interests! There’s no failing in this activity! I just want you all to discover yourselves better and be rewarded for the effort exerted! What’s amazing is you get to keep the badges that you earn even after your program here in Camp Buddy!”

Hiro sighed,  _ “Monologue, monologue, monologue…” _

Keitaro gently slapped his arm, brows furrowed with anger. Hiro only stuck out his tongue. 

Suddenly, Goro cleared his throat. 

“I want to make a small announcement too before we proceed with the activity!” 

A hush fell over the camp.

“Scoutmaster Yoshinori is doing his best to give all of you the greatest possible experience from this summer camp program! Don’t you dare let him down and give it your best shot! Keep in mind that I will be observing this activity with my full attention!”

Silence fell over the scouts and scoutmasters alike. Yoshi stared at Goro with a face full of bewilderment, his eyes wide at the discreet compliment he was just given. 

“Sir…”

Aiden’s jaw dropped, his arms falling to his sides, “Wow, Gramps! That’s probably the nicest thing you’ve ever said to Yoshi.”

Goro snarled, crossing his arms angrily. He glared darkly at the man, “I told you. Stop calling me Gramps! Don’t you have something to do?!”

Aiden chuckled, “Oh yeah!”

Goro sighed, stepping back to let Aiden move to the front of them and announce his portion of the activity. 

“Alright, everyone! For those who are interested in earning badges through athletic and physical activities, follow me!” Aiden waved the scouts in his direction, moving towards the mess hall. A few eager scouts followed him immediately. 

Yuri smiled, clapping her hands, “And for those who lean more into creative activities, just follow me!”

She moved towards the scoutmaster’s cabin, a couple of smaller scouts trotting after her. 

Yoshi smiled, placing a proud hand on his chest, “Campers! Take your time deciding which of these special badges you want to earn! Your choices have to be based on what individually defines you! Your scoutmasters will be waiting for each of you! Dismissed!”

Yoshi gave the remaining scouts a nod, turning around and moving back to the scoutmaster cabin, Goro in tow. 

The six from Cabin One stood in the center of the courtyard, silent for a few moments. 

Once Yoshi and Goro had disappeared, Keitaro bounced on his feet, a bright smile on his face. 

“Wow! A badge activity! I haven’t earned any badges yet!” He chirped excitedly, rocking back and forth. 

Natsumi smiled, “Don’t worry, Keitaro. They’re super easy to earn! All you need to do is pick an activity and go with it!”

Yoichi groaned, throwing his arms behind his head, “Are you kidding me? It’s a stupid piece of cloth. They couldn’t have picked a  _ lamer _ activity!”

Hiro sighed, “Can you not be such a kill-joy so early in the morning, Wolfboy?”

Keitaro cleared his throat, spinning around to face the five, his smile never wavering. 

“So, what kind of badge are you all gonna go for?” He inquired, lacing his fingers behind his back. 

Hiro placed a hand on his chin, pursing his lips in thought, “I was thinking of maybe going for a cooking badge with Bro-Aiden since he’ll be manning the kitchen during the activity. Though, I’ve never cooked for something like a reward before…”

Keitaro titled his head in confusion, “Haven’t you entered school cooking contests before, Hiro?”

The amber-eyed boy smiled, “Yeah, but I really entered those to impress  _ you _ ,” He winked at Keitaro.

The boy in question blushed, rubbing his cheek embarrassingly. Taiga and Yoichi rolled their eyes. 

“A-Anyway, what about the rest of you?”

Natsumi crossing his arms, his eyes closed, “I’m kind of conflicted on this one. I’ve collected most of the badges already. These ones  _ are _ limited edition though… so I might go for a badge I already have.”

Yoichi cocked a brow, “That just seems like an even BIGGER waste of time if you already have it!”

Natsumi shook his head defiantly, “Not at all Yoichi! These badges are limited edition! I won’t be able to get them any other time!”

The violette groaned, “You are so lame…”

Keitaro giggled, turning to Hunter, “How about you, Hunter?” 

The blonde winced, twiddling his fingers together nervously, “I-I’m not sure… I might go for the art badge maybe… but I’m not sure what kind of subject I’ll need…”

Keitaro hummed, rubbing his chin in thought, “Hmmm… maybe you could try drawing a person? Like a model or something? I was thinking of doing something similar for my own activity!”

Hunter smiled gently, “R-Really? What kind of badge are you going to try and get, Keitaro?”

The brunette smiled, “I was thinking of going for the photography badge!”

Hiro smiled, “I figured you’d go for that badge, Keitaro. What are you gonna take pictures of?”

“Well, as I said before, I was thinking of taking pictures of people for my badge. I know I already kinda did that for the Nature Day activity, but I want to try pictures of the people themselves, and less what they’re doing.”

Natsumi smiled, “That sounds really interesting, Keitaro! Who are you gonna take pictures of then?”

The emerald-eyed boy tilted his head, eyes closed in thought. Last time he’d done something like this, he took photos of all of his boys. He thought of doing something like that again, but now he had an extra…

He turned to Taiga, smiling sweetly.

“Taiga?”

He winced. 

“Mind if I make  _ you _ my model?”

He grimaced, looking down at his feet. 

“I don’t feel like doing this stupid activity.”

Hiro was about to retort back, rearing up a bit; but Keitaro placed a hand on his chest, giving the boy a reassuring smile. He shook his head, gazing at Taiga hopefully. 

“Well… you wouldn’t really have to do anything. You could just go about your day and pretend I’m not here!”

Taiga’s eyes narrowed. 

Keitaro widened his smile, trying to soften the boy’s heart, “Taiga… I know we don’t get along too well, but can we try this again? To make up for yesterday?”

Taiga stared at him silently. 

“You’re not gonna stop asking until I say yes, are you?”

Keitaro shook his head proudly.

He heaved a sigh, his shoulders sagging in defeat. 

“Fine. But the moment you get all mushy on me like yesterday, I’m outta here!” He snapped, pointing at Keitaro accusingly. 

The brunette squealed, clapping his hands excitedly, “YES!! Thank you so much, Taiga!!”

The red-head sighed again, rolling his eyes at Keitaro’s enthusiasm. 

Keitaro turned to the rest of the group, “So, what about you guys?”

Natsumi hummed, “I was actually gonna ask Hiro if I could accompany him for his activity. I’d like to try my hand at cooking if he’ll let me?”

Hiro’s eyes widened, “R-Really? You want me to teach you how to cook, Natsumi?”

He nodded, “Of course! I know how to cook basic meals, but Keitaro told me that you are an excellent cook, so I was hoping you’d teach me some of the recipes you know!”

Hiro smiled, a gentle blush crawling over his face. 

“S-Sure! I don’t mind, Natsumi! Just follow me to the mess hall!”

Overtaken with excitement, Hiro grabbed Natsumi’s hand and rushed away, dragging the taller scout behind him. 

Hunter giggled at the sight, “Well, I think I’ll head out too. You wanna come with me, Yoichi? I-I was gonna check out the woods for a subject…”

Yoichi sighed, “What is with you and Frogboy and going into the woods? Fine. But only because you’re gonna get lost in there, and I don’t wanna come fishing you out later!”

Hunter smiled, “Th-Thank you! L-Let me go get my sketchbook from the cabin!”

The small blonde dashed away, Yoichi trudging behind him with his hands stuffed in his pockets. 

Keitaro watched as his boys left to pursue their badges, a bright smile on his face. After a few moments, Taiga let out an irritated scoff, kicking the ground. 

“Are we gonna go or not?”

“O-Oh, yeah! L-Let’s go!”

* * *

The group had split into three separate pairs. Natsumi and Hiro were going to earn a cooking badge in the mess hall. Hunter had left to earn his artist badge with Yoichi in tow. And Keitaro had decided on earning his photography badge, using Taiga as his subject. 

Taiga in question didn’t seem at all interested in the activity. They had come across Yoshi on their way to pick up Keitaro’s camera, who tasked Taiga with an activity, despite the red-heads protests.

Taiga was now sitting in a small clearing behind their cabin, looking down at a small crafting project. It was a tiny wooden boat model with a series of bags to hold it's pieces and a folded paper with instructions. Taiga wasn’t at all interested in the project, but a soft smile from Keitaro made him give in. Why he wasn’t sure. Something about this boy was starting to rub off on him. He’d only lived with him for a day, and yet he was already having an effect. 

“You alright Taiga?” 

He looked up at Keitaro, who was holding his camera up excitedly. 

Taiga snorted, picking up one of the bags and ripping it open, “Fine.”

Keitaro smiled, shaking his camera a bit, “Mind if I start taking my pictures?” 

Taiga said nothing, and Keitaro took his silence as a yes. 

The brunette moved back a bit, dropping to one knee and pointing his camera at Taiga. As the scout went to work on piecing the model together, Keitaro moved around to catch the best lighting for his pictures. 

He snapped a photo. 

“So, Taiga. Why would Yoshi give you a model to do?”

Taiga huffed, “Probably because I did them often last year. I like putting my hands on things.”

Keitaro smiled, taking another picture, “That sounds like a fun hobby! I only just got into photography earlier this year. My sister gave me this camera for my birthday; she wanted me to find some new hobbies to occupy myself with.”

Taiga huffed, “You start running out of hobbies or something?”

Keitaro shook his head, taking another picture. His gaze lowered down to the ground, almost shamefully, “I just… I've had a rough year. I got really wrapped up in school, with me just entering college. My sister is the one paying for my tuition, so I delved super deep into my studies. I don’t want her hard-earned money to go to waste.”

Taiga stared at him silently. 

“I’m just taking some basic classes right now, but I want to prove to my sister that she isn’t wasting her time and money on me. So, ever since the first semester, I focused on my school work and my school work alone. I was losing sleep, going through burnout periods, and even losing touch with my friends. When my birthday came around, she handed me my camera and told me to step outside and not come back until I’d taken ten pictures of whatever I saw. And something about that just... pulled me out of that haze. I was suddenly wrapped in nature again, smelling the fresh air, basking in the sunlight, and feeling the ground beneath my feet. It was almost like an awakening.”

Keitaro sighed, his camera falling into his lap. 

“I was able to ease the stress on myself a bit, but I’m still worried about letting my sister down. Then I got the invitation to come  _ here _ from Hiro. I of course wanted to spend time with him, I’d actually lost touch with him for a few months, but I was on the fence about coming. On one hand, I’d lose focus on school. But on the other, I’d lose valuable time with my oldest friend.”

He smiled, “But, my sister didn’t give me an option. She woke me up on the first, packed my bag, and drove me to the bus stop, dropping me off and told me not to come back until I, and I quote, ‘pulled my head out of my ass and made some new friends’. Then without another word, she drove off. Next thing I knew, I was reading the brochure for Camp Buddy on the bus, thinking about how many new memories I’d make here!”

Keitaro smiled, lifting the camera and hugging it to his chest tightly.

Taiga cocked a brow, “I asked if you ran out of hobbies. Not your whole life story.”

Keitaro gasped, suddenly realizing the word vomit he’d just spilled onto Taiga, “O-Oh, my bad! I just kinda lose myself in my feelings sometimes~”

Keitaro rubbed the back of his head, sticking his tongue out. Taiga shook his head, “You're an idiot.”

Keitaro giggled, taking another picture. 

“And what’s wrong with you!?” Taiga suddenly shouted, dropping the half-built boat to stare at him in bewilderment. Keitaro reeled back, tucking his camera away, “Wh-What?”

“I call you an idiot and you smile like I gave you  _ cake _ !” Taiga screeched, grabbing fistfuls of his hair in frustration. Keitaro chuckled, shaking his head, “I know you’re insulting me, but at the same time, I don’t get the feeling that it's genuine. So, I let it slide. I actually think it’s endearing~.”

Taiga whipped his head around, “ _ Endearing _ ?” 

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah! All of my boys had a mannerism about them that makes them who they are. Natsumi is very caring, Hunter’s very shy, Yoichi is tough, Hiro is fun, and you're a bit snappy. That’s not a bad thing, it separates you from the rest, and it’s what I like about you! You don’t take any hardship from anyone! It’s very inspiring!”

Taiga felt his cheeks grow hot. He looked down at the small model, fisting the grass in-between his fingers. 

“ _ Sh-shut up!  _ Didn’t I say none of that cheesy shit?!” He snapped, keeping his eyes on the ground. 

Keitaro giggled, “Hehehe, right, right, right! Sorry, Taiga! I’ll let you go back to building now! Just pretend I’m not here!”

Taiga huffed, picking the model back up and going back to work. As he gently pieced the model together, he heard Keitaro’s camera begin clicking again, the sound of pictures printing making his ear twitch. 

_ It’s very inspiring! _

Taiga blushed, shaking his head free of thoughts. 

What was happening to him?

* * *

“Okie-dokie! Let’s get started!”

Hiro picked up a nearby apron and slung the strap over his head, hanging the cloth over his body. He tied the strings of the apron behind him, spinning on his heel and turning to Natsumi with a smile. 

The tall scout picked up his own apron, securing it to his torso, nodding enthusiastically. 

“Okay then, let’s start with what you know how to cook. Since you said you wanted me to teach you something new, I’ll need to know what you  _ can _ cook. So?” Hiro started, leaning on the kitchen island. 

Natsumi hummed, “Well, I can do basic recipes like noodles, things that are easily put together like a sandwich or pizza. And I can bake cookies. That’s about it…”

He twiddled his thumbs together, looking down at his feet embarrassingly. Hiro only smiled, skipping over to him and patting his shoulder, “That’s okay, Natsumi! Isn’t that why you’re here to learn?”

He nodded. 

“That’s the spirit! So, I was thinking we could work off of something you already know how to make, and spice it up a bit! Do you know how to make a sandwich ring?” Hiro asked, pulling out one of the many cookbooks Aiden had stored in the upper cabinets. Natsumi shook his head. 

“I don’t know what that is so…”

Hiro grinned, opening the book and flipping to the correct page, laying it down on the counter for Natsumi to see. He pointed at the picture. 

“A sandwich ring is exactly what it sounds like! It’s a big ol’ sandwich shaped like a ring! It has meat, cheese, relish, and various sauces like mustard and mayo! And the fun part about it, we’re gonna make the dough for the sandwich from scratch!” Hiro clapped his hands excitedly, his stomach growling loudly. 

Natsumi’s eyes lit up, a large smile crawling over his face, “Wow! This looks and  _ sounds _ super good! How many are we gonna make?”

Hiro hummed, “I’m thinking we’ll just go for one right now. We don’t wanna use up too many of the ingredients in here. We wanna leave plenty for Aiden to make lunch with. So, I think we should make one for our cabin!”

Natsumi nodded, “Sounds great! Where do we start?”

Hiro walked over to one of the cabinets, pulled out a small packet, “Well, since we’re gonna make the dough from scratch, we’re gonna start with some yeast! We’ll also need a small amount of sugar and some warm water! We’re gonna dissolve the sugar in the water then mix in the yeast! Once we mix it, we’re gonna wrap the bowl with saran wrap and let it proof for about five minutes so that the yeast can rise!”

Hiro began executing the process, gently pouring some sugar in the bowl of water he’d prepped, then dumping in the pack of yeast. He grabbed the wisk, and pushed the bowl over to Natsumi, holding the whisk out, “You wanna stir it?”

Natsumi gasped, nodding excitedly. He grabbed the whisk and began to gently stir the water and yeast. 

“Wow! I didn’t think you could make the dough from scratch! Where did you learn this, Hiro?” Natsumi asked, watched the water and yeast mix with delight. Hiro smiled fondly, leaning on the table. 

“My mother did! She taught me everything that I know about cooking.”

Natsumi smiled, pushing the bowl back for Hiro to wrap it, “She sounds amazing! How long has she been cooking?”

Hiro picked up the bowl, moving across the kitchen to wrap it, “Ever since she was young. She’s even written and published her own cookbook! She was even on her way to getting her own cooking show for warm, filling, homemade meals!”

On her way? Natsumi rose a brow, “What do you mean, on her way? What stopped her?”

Hiro stopped. His shoulders sagged a bit, and he pushed the now wrapped bowl away.

“...She got sick. Really sick.”

Natsumi gasped. 

“One day, when I was really young, maybe five or six, my mom started getting sick. She’d get fevers, trouble with the bathroom, and sometimes, her skin would be stained yellow. It was never frequent, so we didn’t pay it much mind. But… when she went to the doctor one spring, the doctors told her she had early signs of Hepatitis C, a type of liver cancer. 

Natsumi felt his heart jump in his throat, “C-Cancer?”

He nodded, “Yeah. It’s usually chronic and can be fatal at times. Though, it  _ is _ curable with the right treatments and medicine. At least, if you can afford it. Most of the time, the longer it lasts, the more likely you’re gonna need a transplant. The treatments usually don’t take long, as long as you can afford it.”

Hiro sighed, “When she got diagnosed with it, my family immediately went to help her. We tried to get her everything she needed from medicine to therapy, everything. But, it does have a small rate of coming back. And it always did. No matter how hard we tried.”

Hiro clenched his fists. 

“Eventually, the doctors said my mom would need a transplant in the future. However, that procedure is so expensive, even here. But we had the funds! Until…”

Natsumi walked around the island, placing his hand on Hiro’s shoulder, “Until?”

Silence. 

“My dad…”

Natsumi’s eyes widened. 

“My dad was always so supportive of my mother’s career. Her own book, recipes, and eventually her own TV show! We’d rope in so much money, not just for us, but the whole family! But, when she got sick, we were spending hundreds of dollars on her treatments, more than my dad liked.”

Suddenly, his shoulder began to shake. 

“M-My dad, that bastard. When they said she’d need a transplant, he knew how much money it was gonna cost. He was always a cheap guy, never liking spending his money on things we ‘didn’t need’. You’d think my  _ mother _ , his  _ wife _ would be one of those things! But NO!  _ Apparently _ , my mother isn’t worth the effort, the funds, or the… the… ANYTHING! One day, I woke up to go make breakfast for my mom. My dad was usually down there reading the paper, but that morning… he wasn’t…”

“We looked everywhere. The house, his work, usual hangouts. Nothing. Then… my auntie came rushing to the house, tears streaming down her face. She suddenly picked me up and held me to her chest, sobbing violently while screaming curses about my father.”

Natsumi gulped. 

“My dad… withdrew every penny from our bank, and left.”

Natsumi gasped. Hiro bit his lip, tears leaking from his eyes. 

“I-I don’t k-know why he did it! I-I thought he-he loved us! Bu-But he- he t-took everything a-and abandoned us! Why?! I d-don’t understand-!”

Natsumi suddenly pulled Hiro into his chest, tucking the boy’s face into him.

Hiro reached up and seized Natsumi’s uniform shirt, and wailed helplessly into his chest. Natsumi wondered if he’d talked about this before, the reaction alone off-putting. 

But he kept this to himself, focusing instead on rubbing Hiro’s back gently, slowly rocking back and forth to comfort him. 

Hiro hiccuped and sobbed, completely forgetting the bowl of now risen yeast sitting on the counter. Natsumi ran his fingers through Hiro’s orange locks, taking slow, easy breaths. He tried to use slow breathing and his own heartbeat to calm Hiro, as his own mother had done for him. 

“I-I’m so-sorry… N-Natsu… I… e-every ti-time I t-talk about it I-”

“No, no, no, shh. Don’t be sorry, Hiro. Sometimes, we just need to get things off our chest. And sometimes no matter how often we talk about something, it still hurts. So don’t apologize, okay?” Natsumi gently cooed, rubbing Hiro’s back. The smaller scout sniffled a few times, rubbing his nose. 

Natsumi smiled down at him fondly, patting Hiro on the head, “There, feel a bit better?”

Hiro nodded, sniffling. 

“S-Sorry about that… I didn’t mean to dump my whole life story on you…” 

Natsumi shook his head, “Don’t worry about it, Hiro! It’s almost nice that you trust me with this information about yourself. And don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone if you don’t want me to!”

Hiro smiled, “That’s okay. Keitaro already knows this story, and I don’t think I mind the others knowing either. It feels nice to get the frustrations about it off my chest. Though, I think I need to get better at expressing it so that I don’t… uhh…”

Natsumi shook his head again, “Not at all, Hiro! Like I said, it feels fulfilling to be there for someone like this! Makes me feel like my older brother!”

Hiro sniffled, “Older brother? I didn’t know you had siblings.”

Natsumi nodded, “Yep! Three to be exact. I have my two younger siblings Ami and Takumi, they’re twins. And then there’s my older brother, Naoto! Holding you when you got upset reminded me of how my brother would do the same for me when I got upset!”

Hiro smiled, “Your brother sounds like a cool guy.”

“He is! He’s super amazing at everything he does! He’s dependable, charismatic, charming, and a great presence overall! I look up to him quite a lot, and our whole family is super proud of him!” Natsumi chirped, flashing a bright smile. 

Hiro sighed, moving around Natsumi to pick up the bowl of dough, “He sounds like a great guy! Do you ever feel pressured though?”

Natsumi rose a brow, “Pressured?”

“Yeah. Keitaro told me a common exchange between elder and younger siblings was when the elder is successful, the younger siblings are pressured to come out just like them. It can even be the other way around! Not that Keitaro has that kind of strain with his own sibling, he just said a couple of his friends who  _ do _ have siblings often have this problem.”

Natsumi’s eyes went wide with shock. 

“A-Ah! I’m sorry, Natsumi! I didn’t mean to assume a-anything!” 

“N-No, not at all Hiro! You’re actually right about that, however. My brother is truly an amazing guy, and a lot of my family expects me to be as great as he is! But I don’t worry about it too much!” 

Hiro raised a skeptical brow, “Is that why you’re always doing chores? Increasing your workload and such?”

Natsumi sighed, rubbing the back of his head, “A-Ah… is it that obvious?” 

Hiro nodded. 

The bluenette sighed, “I see. Well… in a way, yes. The scoutmasters are always calling me the best in front of everyone, and they often look to me for help! I pressure myself and do extra chores so that I won’t let them down! I like being relied on, it's very fulfilling!”

Hiro titled his head, “Yeah… but… don’t you get tired at all? Doing all those extra chores? I mean, on every ‘off’ day we’ve had, you’ve decided to do chores instead of hanging out with me, or Keitaro, or anyone really.”

Natsumi gasped, “O-Oh goodness! I-I didn’t mean to seem like I’m avoiding you guys at all! I-I-”

“H-Hey, slow down, Natsumi! That’s not what I said! I-It came wrong, I should’ve worded it differently. S-Sorry, I don’t really think about what I say… but I’m pretty sure you knew that,” Hiro rubbed the back of his head nervously, kicking the ground with embarrassment.

“D-Don’t worry about it too much, Hiro. I kinda got what you were saying, anyway… but yeah, I do get tired from time to time. It is a lot of work, but since I’m giving it to myself, I really can’t blame anyone but well… myself.”

Hiro shook his head, “But no one said you  _ have _ to do that extra work! Your health is much more important than some dumb old reputation! You need to take care of yourself more!”

Natsumi smiled, “Hehe, you kinda sounded like Keitaro there!”

“Well, he  _ is _ my oldest friend. I guess parts of his patience and uhh… ‘worldly wisdom’ has rubbed off on me,” He admitted, rubbing his neck nervously. 

The other scout chuckled, “Hehe, that’s quite alright!”

Hiro smiled, “Anyway, I don’t you overworking yourself anymore! In the name of Keitaro and with what I’m pretty sure he’d say, ‘Stop extru… extcrus… uhh…”

“Excruciating?”

“Y-YEAH! Stop doing that! If you’re tired, you take a break! And don’t do more than you’re asked! Got it!?”

Hiro jabbed his finger against Natsumi’s nose, making the bluenette blush and laugh, “Hehe, a-alright, Hiro! I promise!”

Hiro nodded firmly, “Good!”

The two fell into a comfortable silence. 

“U-Ummm… Hiro?”

“Yeah?”

“Is the dough supposed to be that… big?”

“A-Ah! Crap! We over-proofed it! We’ll have to start over!”

Natsumi chuckled, reaching up to pull another pack of yeast out of the cabinet.

* * *

Hunter skipped along the path, clutching his sketchbook to his chest excitedly. He looked back and forth, gazing at the forest ahead. 

“Hmm… I wonder…”

“Can you just pick something?”

Hunter turned around to see Yoichi walk up behind him, looking as bored as ever. Hunter sighed, tightening his grip on his sketchbook. 

“I-I  _ was _ going to draw someone, but with everyone else busy with their activities, I’m not sure what to do now. Maybe I should just stick to landscaping…” He sighed, disappointment weighing down on his chest. 

Yoichi grimaced, finding himself hating the sight of Hunter being upset. Only sighed, slapping the small boy on the back, making him squeak. 

“Don’t worry about that shit! Just find something that draws your eye and well, draw it! I’m no artist, but I have a good feeling that’s how it works.”

Hunter coughed, the wind getting knocked out of him by the slap. He scratched his chin, looking around the woods. 

“W-Well… you  _ do _ have a bit of a point there… I just need something too… huh?” 

Hunter’s ear twitched at the sound of a nearby bush rustling. He blinked rapidly, squinting and narrowing his gaze on the bush. 

“What?” 

Yoichi came up behind him, raising a brow at Hunter’s sudden silence. 

“Something… moved over there…” Hunter whispered, his knees beginning to quake in fright. He took a step back, bumping into Yoichi, who only sighed. The large scout rose his head, quickly sniffing the air. Hunter held his breath, tucking his face behind his sketchbook. 

Yoichi smirked. He lifted his hand, putting the tips of two fingers together and sticking them in his mouth. He sucked in a breath. 

_ “PHWEEET!” _

Yoichi released a loud whistle, making Hunter jump in fright, whirling around to face him, “Wh-What are you doing Yoi-”

“Hold on.” 

Yoichi placed a finger on Hunter’s lips, making the small scout blush. They waited in silence. 

A flurry of footsteps raced towards them from beyond the trees. Hunter squealed in fright, latching onto Yoichi for protection. 

The large scout lowered down onto one knee and opened up his arms, a smile gracing his face when a large husky leapt from the bushes and dove into his embrace. 

“Hey, there Yuki! You scared Twinkerbell over here, ya little rascal!” Yoichi ran his hands over the top of Yuki’s head, scratching her ears lovingly. 

Yuki barked happily, jumping up and propping her front paws on Yoichi’s chest, licking his face excitedly. Yoichi chuckled, gently pushing back against her face, “Hey, yer slobbering on me, girl!”

Hunter stood behind Yoichi in awe, gawking at the dog. 

“Y-Yoichi? Is that, your dog?”

Yoichi nodded, looking over his shoulder, “Yeah, this is Yuki.”

Hunter smiled, lowering himself down to his knees, “W-Wow… I didn’t know you had a pet. I-Is she nice…?” 

Yoichi huffed, “Only if you're nice to her first.”

Yuki barked again, looking over Yoichi’s shoulder to see Hunter. The small blonde seized up, going stiff with fright as Yuki stared at him silently. She jumped off Yoichi, slowly walking towards Hunter, her ears turned back with caution.

Hunter remained still, letting her come to him at her own speed.

Yuki stopped in front of him, leaning forward tentatively and sniffing him a few times. Hunter held his breath. 

Yuki began panting, her tail beginning to wag. Without warning, she licked the side of Hunter’s face happily. 

“W-Wah!” Hunter fell back onto his rear, Yuki suddenly jumping on him to slather him with kisses, the boy giggling at the affection. 

Yoichi rose a brow, climbing back onto his feet, “Wow… she’s never taken to someone so… quickly before.”

Hunter tried to respond, but another shove from Yuki and Hunter was on his back, trying to shield his face. 

“Hahahaha! S-Stop! Th-That ti-tickles!” Hunter rolled over onto his side, trying to cover his face from the onslaught of licks. 

Yoichi chuckled, finally taking pity on the boy. He reached forward and gently took Yuki by her collar, giving it a few, soft tugs. 

“Come on, girl. You’re gonna drown him in your slobber at this rate, let him breathe,”

Yuki obeyed, jumping off of Hunter and running in circles around him, barking with zeal as Hunter slowly crawled back onto his feet, rubbing his face with his sleeves. 

“Oh my goodness… I didn’t think she’d do that,” Hunter giggled, wiping his sleeves. Yoichi nodded in agreement, “Me either. She’s often afraid and hostile towards strangers, so that took me by surprise too.”

Hunter hummed, “Maybe it’s because you’re here? She might have felt safer since she’s your dog.”

He shrugged, “Maybe.”

Yuki trotted up to Hunter’s side, butting her head against his hand, letting out a few whimpers. Hunter cooed, turning to her and scratching her ears, tucking his sketchbook under his arm. 

“I didn’t know pets were allowed here at Camp Buddy,” He said, patting Yuki’s head. 

Yoichi looked down, his brows furrowing, “They’re not.”

Hunter looked up in confusion, glancing back between Yoichi and Yuki, “But…”

“She can’t stay at camp with me anymore because she bit someone who attacked her last year.”

Hunter winced, looking back at Yuki, “Self-defense?”

Yoichi nodded, his head low. 

Hunter hummed, rubbing his chin. 

He gasped, pulling his sketchbook out and turning to Yoichi, a bright smile on his face. 

“OH! Can I draw you with Yuki?” 

Yoichi’s head snapped up, his eyes wide, “Wh-What? Me n’ Yuki?”

Hunter nodded, “Y-Yeah! It would really help me with drawing people! And I’ve never tried drawing animals before, and Yuki’s certainly pretty enough!”

A smile crawled on Yoichi’s face, “Here that girl? Your model material.”

Yuki barked. 

“Sure, why not.”

Hunter clapped his hands together happily, “Thank you, Yoichi! Can you and Yuki sit up against that tree over there? It’ll provide a good background for me.”

Yoichi moved to said spot, sitting down and leaning against the trunk. Yuki followed suit, laying herself down in Yoichi’s lap happily, her tail wagging. 

Hunter smiled, sitting down in front of them and opening to a clean page in his sketchbook. 

“Alright, let’s start with Yoichi’s head and torso, and work from there…”

Hunter pulled his pencil out, glancing up at Yoichi for a few seconds, then looking back down at the paper. 

Yoichi glanced up, “How long will this take?”

“Not long! Maybe thirty minutes or so at the latest,” He answered, drawing out Yoichi’s fluffy hair. The violette huffed. 

“I take it back Yuki, modeling’s boring.”

Yuki only panted, licking Yoichi’s hand, asking for more pets, which he happily obliged too. 

Hunter began sketching out Yoichi’s head, his tongue stuck out in thought. 

Yoichi sighed, “So, Twinkerbell.”

Hunter raised his head. 

“What got you into drawing and such.”

Hunter looked down at his book, his eyes unreadable, “Hmm… well… it’s one of the few things I’m good at. I’ve always loved how comic artists, writers, and animators expressed themselves through their mediums. It kinda spoke to me in a way.”

“You read comics?” Yoichi asked, a brow cocked. Hunter nodded. 

“Yeah. I love Japanese manga the most. It’s another reason I was excited that my parent’s next business section was here in Japan. Even if we’re on a small island, I’m really loving the culture and all the things I can find here.”

“Heh. Your Japanese is pretty good. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you grew up speaking it.”

Hunter blushed, his lips quivering, “A-Ah, th-thank you… I… kinda learned so that I could read raw mangas and watch anime without subtitles…”

Yoichi snorted, shaking his head. 

Hunter stuck out his tongue, moving the pencil down to start on Yoichi’s shoulders. 

“So, you said your parents brought you here for some business thing?” 

“Y-Yeah… they own a company that does business around the world. Because of that, we’re always on the move. I don’t think I’ve ever lived in one place for over a year or so,” Hunter answered, erasing a small mistake. 

Yoichi winced, “Sheesh, that sounds horrible. I’d hate moving around that much…”

The blonde shook his head, “I’m used to it though. I get to see a lot of new places, even if it’s only from a balcony or inside an event hall.”

Yoichi raised his brow, “What?”

Hunter sighed, “I don’t go outside much, or really at all. Whenever we’d move to a new place, my parents would have me stay in our temporary house while they were away on business. And when they’d take me out, it would be to a museum or art hall where they could also do business while spending time with me.”

“...Jeez. Sounds boring if you ask me. Your parents don’t like you or something?” He asked, patting Yuki’s head again. 

Hunter shook his head, “No, no, Yoichi. They’re very kind and loving, and they only want what’s best for me. They always made time to spend with me if I wasn’t studying or they weren’t on a trip. So, I’m used to being alone, and inside. It’s actually why I got into art. It helped me express myself without having to talk to anyone.”

He began to sketch Yuki, looking up and down at the now sleeping husky. Yoichi remained silent for a few moments. 

“It was the opposite for me. I was anywhere  _ but _ indoors. And the only family I have is Yuki.”

Hunter looked up from his drawing in shock, seeing Yoichi looking off the side darkly, his eyes hidden by his hair. 

“What do you mean by that?” He asked, head tilted gently. 

Yoichi sighed, scratching the back of Yuki’s neck, “I’d rather not get into it…”

“I understand…”

They returned to silence. 

“Well… thank you for letting me draw you Yoichi, and letting me talk a bit. I-I hope I didn’t bother you at all…” The small scout tucked into himself, looking at his drawing nervously. 

Yoichi shook his head, yawning, “It’s fine. I’d rather talk while sitting here than sit in silence for half an hour while you doodle your thing.”

“Speaking of which…”

Hunter dusted off a few eraser scraps and smiled, scooting up towards Yoichi. He flipped his book over, smiling nervously at the large scout. 

“Done!”

Yoichi looked down, eyes narrowing as he observed the picture. 

It was him leaning up against the tree, Yuki laying in his lap fast asleep. The forest was delicately detailed behind them, showing off the peel of the trunk and the flow of the leaves. Yoichi was drawn smiling softly down at Yuki, a hand scratching at her ear. 

He said nothing. 

“W-Well… what do you… uh… think?” 

Yoichi patted Yuki’s head, stirring her from her slumber. The violette grinned. 

“Not bad, Twinkerbell.”

Hunter smiled, “Y-You like it?” 

“Yeah, sure. You drew Yuki pretty well, looks just like her, don’t it?” Yoichi grinned down at Yuki, who sat up and licked his face in return. Hunter smiled, feeling his eyes glisten, “Th-Thank you…”

Yoichi yawned, stretching out his arms and legs, slowly rising back to his feet, Yuki standing up in tow. 

“So, is that all you need for your badge thing?” He asked, Hunter scrambling to his feet behind him. 

“U-Uh… yes, that’s all! I just need to show this to Ms. Yuri and I should be done!” 

Yoichi nodded, looking down at Yuki. He lifted his hand and gently petted her head, receiving a playful bark and lick. 

“Alright, go on Yuki. I’ll come back and feed you later.”

Giving her a few pats on the back, Yuki barked happily, bounding away in the forest. 

Yoichi shook his head, beckoning Hunter to follow him out. The two began their small hike back to the camp in relative silence. 

It wasn’t until about ten minutes passed that Yoichi spoke up again, keeping his gaze on the road ahead. 

“Hey, when you show that drawing of yours to the Crazy Lady…”

Hunter looked up curiously. 

“...Can I… well… keep the drawing?”

Hunter gasped, a gentle blush dusting over his face. But, he smiled, hugging the sketchbook to his chest. 

“S-Sure…”

* * *

“EEEEEE!!! I can’t believe it!!! I got my first badge!!”

Keitaro jumped up and down on his bed excitedly, holding the small circular cloth in his hand. His journal was sitting open on the duvet, it's pages bouncing as Keitaro leapt across his bed. 

Taiga laid on his side in his own bunk above Keitaro, groaning with disinterest, “You’ve told me a hundred times already. I was there. I’ve seen it.”

Keitaro only squealed, moving to the end of his bed and showing the badge to Taiga, “See!?”

“YES! You’ve shown me SIX TIMES already!!!”

Keitaro giggled, dropping back down onto his rear to look at his badge. He gently placed it next to the various pictures he’d shown Yoshi of Taiga building the small model boat. He smiled down at his work fondly, picking up his glue stick to secure the pictures to the pages.

“I can’t wait to show the rest of the boys! Do you think they have their badges yet?” Keitaro asked, poking the bed above him. 

Taiga snorted, “Judging by how we’re the only ones here, not likely.”

Keitaro giggled, rubbing the back of his neck, “Yeah, you’re probably right. What do you plan on doing for the rest of the day? It’s almost lunchtime but we’re done with our activity already.”

Taiga flopped onto his back, “Nothing.”

Keitaro hummed, “Ehhh? Come on, Taiga! Are you sure there isn’t something you wanna do?”

“No.”

“Hmmm!” Keitaro pouted, tucking his head down and crossing his arms. He puffed out his lips, leaning on his hands. 

“I wonder… what Sir Aiden is making for lunch…”

“K-Keitaro!” 

The brunette looked up to see Hunter and Yoichi walk in, the blonde having a skip in his step. 

“Hey, boys! Did you guys get your badges?” 

“Mh-hm!”

Hunter walked over to Keitaro’s bed, sitting down next to him. He pulled a small piece of cloth, holding it out in his hands. 

“I earned the art badge by drawing Yoichi and… uh…”

“It’s fine, he knows.”

Yoichi moved over to his bed, taking off his shoes and laying down. 

Hunter smiled, “O-Okay… I drew Yoichi with Yuki!”

Keitaro gasped, “Really?! That’s so cool, can I see?”

“I gave the drawing to Yoichi, since he wanted to keep it. You’ll have to ask-”

“YOICHI!”

Keitaro leapt off his bed and dove onto Yoichi’s, grabbing the large scout’s arm, “Can I see? Can I? Can I!?” 

“What the- calm down Keitaro, jeez! What’s got you all riled up?” Yoichi pulled his arm away, sitting up in bed. 

Taiga huffed, “He got his first badge. That’s what happened. And now he won’t shut up.”

Keitaro grabbed Yoichi’s arm and shook it, flashing his biggest smile, “Pleeeease, Yoichi?” 

The violette blushed darkly, turning his head away. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper, tossing it at Keitaro. 

“H-Here! Now stop pestering me, will ya?!”

Keitaro grabbed the paper and unfolded it, a bright smile on his face. When he unveiled the drawing, he gasped. 

“WOW! This looks just like them, Hunter! And the background is so detailed! How long did this take you?” He asked, turning to Hunter, who blushed and looked off to the side in return. 

“A-About… th-thirty minutes or so…”

“Really? Thirty minutes only?! That’s so amazing, Hunter!” Keitaro placed the drawing on Yoichi’s chest, jumping back over to his bed to give the small boy a hug. 

“A-Ah, Keitaro…!?”

“WE’RE BACK!”

The four turned at the sound of Hiro’s voice, seeing him and Natsumi walk in. Hiro was carrying a large tray covered in tin foil, moving through the room and over to his bed. 

Natsumi walked in and closed the door behind them, slipping off his shoes, “Did everyone earn a badge today?”

Keitaro jumped off his bed, skipping to him and Hiro, “I earned the photography badge! I got it by taking pictures of Taiga and his activity!”

Natsumi smiled, grinning down at the small badge, “That’s wonderful, Keitaro! I’m glad you had fun! What about you, Hunter? Yoichi?”

Hunter held up his badge, “I got the art badge by drawing Yoichi! He got the art badge too!”

Yoichi snorted, “I told you not to tell them that, Twinkerbell!” 

Hunter only smiled. 

Natsumi grinned, clapping his hands, “That’s wonderful! I knew you could get one, Yoichi!” 

“Shut up, Mr. Perfect!”

Keitaro sniffed the air, turning to Hiro, “Mmm… what’s that smell?”

Hiro smiled, tearing off the tin foil of the plate he brought in, unveiling the giant sandwich ring. 

“Natsumi and I’s badge earning activity!” 

Yoichi immediately sat up, drooling at the sight of the food, “Hell, yeah! That smells good!” 

“Not yet, Wolfboy!” 

Hiro jumped up to fight off Yoichi, who raced across the room towards him. Keitaro chuckled, “I assume you two earned the cooking badge?” 

Natsumi nodded, “We did. And we learned a bit more about each other too! How about you, Taiga? What did you do for your badge-earning activity?”

The entire room went silent, turning to the red-head laying sideways in his bed. 

Taiga remained silent for a few moments. 

He held up his model. 

“Boat.”

Keitaro snorted. 

Natsumi rose a brow, walking up to look at it better, “That it is…”

Hiro smiled, “Well, now that we’ve all told each other what badges we earned,  _ now _ we can eat. And only  _ one piece _ per person, Wolfboy!” 

“Why are you only yelling at me?!”

“Cuz you’d eat two or three if I didn’t!”

“G-Guys!” 

“Hiro, Yoichi, come on, let’s not argue.”

As the four descended into a rather tense conversation, trying to properly disperse food, Taiga sighed heavily. 

“Goddammit, is it always this noisy here?”

Keitaro nodded, “Yep. And I wouldn’t have it any other way!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~getting to know yooouuuu, getting to know alllll, abooouut, yooouuuu~
> 
> Sorry, shameless musical reference :P
> 
> But, after the long wait, Day 10 is here! Very loosely based off of Hunter's Route Day 10 in the beginning, but diverges to it's own plots as we go along. 
> 
> This may indeed be Keitaro's route, but I wanted in include some bonding moment for the others boys as well. This is that start of that! I decided to pair up the boys for the activity and delve into some lesser seen pairs, like Hiro and Natsumi, and Yoichi and Hunter. 
> 
> This time, we learn a bit more about our boys. Keitaro's sister is the one paying for his school, and we get a little insight on how he was doing right before Camp Buddy; the answer being not too well. His poor sister had to kick him out of the house to give him some sunlight. And, we get a small story on Hiro's family! So, in my headcannons, Hiro's dad wasn't the best man. A bit of a penny-pincher, so when his wife fell ill, he left to protect his small fortune. 
> 
> And I also headcanon this "illness" Hina Akiba has to be Hepatitis C, a type of liver cancer that can be long term. Now, I'm no doctor, so I may have gotten some facts about it wrong, and if that's offensive to anyone, my sincerest apologies. 
> 
> Hiro despises his Dad quite a bit, giving him a bit more in common with Yoichi. For Hunter and Yoichi's story, there really isn't much to either that I can add, so, I thought it would just be fun for the two directly opposite characters to interact in an awkward but fluffy way. 
> 
> And our boy Taiga is slowly, but surely, warming up. Taiga's sort of, "redemption", will be much more docile in Keitaro's route, with the four main boys still being around. 
> 
> And Day 11 is alllll about our flame-head boy~~~
> 
> Also, also, I have a super fun announcement to make! 
> 
> STREAMING!!!
> 
> I do my best work when I have company, so whenever I'm writing new chapters, I'm often on the horn with my sister. So, I asked Twitter if they'd like to see the creation of Sleepsong in action, and got a good response. 
> 
> So, from now on, every Sunday at 0630 GMT (+9) time, I will be streaming new chapters of Sleepsong, along with playing Camp Buddy itself! Streams will be over on Picarto, so if you wanna pop in, say hi, and watch me create this giant gay fic, I'd be happy to have ya! That's 0630 GMT (+9)!! 
> 
> (Yeah I know that's early, but I do my best work early in the morning drinking coffee~) 
> 
> Anyway, that's all the announcements I have today. If you wanna see updates on Sleepsong (plus cb shenanigans in general), check me out on Twitter @TiraminaFW
> 
> NEXT TIME:  
> Yoshi decides to give the tired scouts free day after three days of nonstop activities. Keitaro takes this time to update his journal and take more pictures, letting himself fall into nature once more. But, to his utmost bewilderment, Taiga wants to... join him?! What does Taiga want? And after only three days, is he really starting to open up?
> 
> STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!!
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!!!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	13. Day 11: Cracking Shell

_ “Why… why did you do this to me?!” _

_ “You left me behind! What was I supposed to do!?”  _

_ “TALK TO ME!! Write a note!? Something, ANYTHING! But not this! Do you really hate me that much!?” _

_ “No, I don’t! I love you, Taiga! It’s YOU who’s forgotten ME!” _

_ “So ruining my reputation and hurting innocent people is your genius plan to get me to remember you!?” _

_ “I didn’t mean for all of that to happen…” _

_ “Well, what the fuck did you think was gonna happen!? It would all be sunshine and fucking rainbows!? Manuel is seriously hurt!” _

_ “You’re the one that attacked him!” _

_ “OUT OF SELF DEFENSE!!! He threatened to hurt my friends! I did it to protect Eduard and Lee! And myself! And now, everyone hates me! Everyone thinks I’m some kind of… some kind of… m-monster!” _

_ “T-Taiga… I…” _

_ “SHUT UP! I DON’T WANNA HEAR ANY EXCUSES!!!” _

_ “I’M YOUR BOYFRIEND! I did what I thought I had to! I didn’t mean for anyone to be seriously hurt-” _

_ “ENOUGH! I… I… I HATE YOU!!!” _

* * *

_ “NO!” _

Taiga shot up, eyes wide with fear. 

He clutched his shirt tightly, his chest heaving with each heavy, terror-filled wheeze. Cold sweat poured down his neck, making every hair on his body stand on end. 

He squeezed his eyes shut. 

“I-It’s just a dream… just a… a dream…” 

He gently caressed the scar across his nose. 

Taiga took in a deep, shaky breath, trying to calm his jangled nerves. He looked down at the nearby window, a dim light shining through the closed curtain. It must have been early. 

He cautiously looked around, gazing at the other beds around him. 

Everyone was still asleep. 

“Phew…”

Slowly, Taiga climbed down the ladder of his bunk, peering at Keitaro as he did so. The boy still had his head buried under his blanket and was sleeping soundly. 

Once he touched down, he tip-toed through the room, freezing at any given noise. Once he cleared the main room, he slipped into the bathroom, moving towards one of the sinks. 

He sighed, twisted the faucet, and turned the water on. Once running, he cupped his hands underneath the cold liquid and splashed it into his face. He did this a few times, washing the sleep from his eyes. 

When he sat up and looked into the mirror, he noticed the grey, heavy bags under his eyes. 

“Dammit… where’s Eduard’s makeup tips when I need them,” He whispered, pulling on his face. He looked like he hadn’t slept a wink, yet he did so for at least six or so hours, judging by the position of the sun. 

He sighed, straightening his back and letting his spine pop a few times, groaning as his muscles loosened. 

“Hah… I fucking hate this… why do I still have nightmares about it? It was over a year ago… I just need to get over it…”

He gripped the sides of the sink, staring down into the drain. 

He closed his eyes, taking long, deep breaths. 

He felt his shoulders begin to shake. 

“Here.”

“Wha-” Taiga whirled around at the sound of another voice. 

When he turned, he saw Keitaro standing about a meter away, holding a glass of water in his hand. 

“You look like you need it…”

Taiga snarled, wanting to slap the glass out of his hand. But when he opened his mouth to say so, his throat seized up. He gasped and coughed, not realizing how dehydrated he’d become. 

Keitaro said nothing but continued to hold the glass out. 

Taiga kept his eyes low, but reached out and snatched the glass out of his hand. He turned back to the mirror and guzzled the liquid down, sighing through his nose as it soothed his throat. 

Keitaro smiled, “Feel better?” 

When he finished the glass, he heaved a breath, looking over his shoulder with narrowed eyes. 

He didn’t respond. 

Keitaro didn’t seem bothered, only walking up to the neighboring sink, “I’ve been there plenty of times myself. I heard you when you woke up, but I decided to wait until you had left to go get you some water.”

Taiga stared blankly at the sink, “...I didn’t even hear you get up.”

Keitaro grinned proudly, “More light on my feet than you expected, eh?”

He snorted. 

They fell into silence. Keitaro turned the sink on, twisting and turning the faucets until he got his desired temperature. When ready, he cupped his hands under the water and started washing his face. 

Taiga watched him silently, his mind doing flips in his head. He wasn’t sure how to respond to this display of kindness. It was different. Usually, Keitaro was… unrelenting in his approach. 

But this time, he gave Taiga what he thought he needed, and stepped back. 

He narrowed his eyes, staring at the brunette suspiciously. 

Keitaro glanced over, raising a brow, “U-Uh… can I help you?”

Taiga’s gaze only darkened, “You’re acting weird.”

“Am I?”

Taiga huffed, “Don’t play dumb. You’re usually unrelenting and persistent as all hell when you try and do something for me! But now, you’re just so… casual. You’re not talking, not asking questions, anything. What’s your plan?” 

Keitaro stared at him blankly. He bit his lip and snorted. 

And started laughing. 

Taiga reeled back, that not being the reaction he’d expected. 

Keitaro chuckled, wiping his eyes, “Hehehe, wow! I gave you a glass of water, Taiga! I knew that’s what you needed, and that you probably didn’t want any friendship speeches right now. I know I may be… intense sometimes, in my approach. But, you seemed rattled by your nightmare, so, I thought I’d just back down today.”

He sighed, leaning back against the sink, “I’m sorry if I’ve been too persistent these past three days. I thought about it last night after we talked yesterday, and maybe… you just need space. And, as your roommate, I should respect that!” 

Taiga’s jaw dropped, his eyes going wide with shock. 

Keitaro only smiled, picking up his toothbrush. 

As he began to brush his teeth, Taiga turned back to the sink, picking up his own. He stared at it blankly, unsure of what to say. Keitaro was backing down, giving him the space he had wanted since he moved in. Finally!

And yet… why did he feel almost… disappointed? 

He glanced over at Keitaro again, watching the boy brush his teeth with a joyful hum, bouncing on his feet. 

He sighed, picking up the toothpaste and squirting the paste out onto his brush. 

He turned the water on again, placing the brush underneath it. He glanced back over to Keitaro, tightening his lips nervously. 

“So… you said you’ve had your fair share of nightmares?”

Keitaro turned to him slowly, his eyes wide with shock. Taiga stepped back, “Wh-What?” 

Keitaro spit out his toothpaste, rinsing off his mouth hurriedly, “A-Ah! I’m sorry, it’s just that… you’ve never started a conversation with me before…”

The red-head rolled his eyes, “If this is how you’re going to react every time I talk to you, I’ll just keep my mouth shut for the rest of the week.”

“A-Ah! S-Sorry, Taiga! I just, uhh… was a little shocked.”

“Hmm…”

“B-But… yes, you’re right. I’ve had my fair share of nightmares,” He answered, filling up a cup with mouthwash.

Taiga hummed, “You don’t seem like the kind of guy who’d have nightmares…”

No response. 

Taiga stared at Keitaro wordlessly, watching as the brunette’s shoulders tightened. 

“...Everyone has their demons. I just don’t let mine run my life.”

Taiga’s jaw snapped shut. 

Keitaro sipped his mouthwash, swishing it around in his mouth. He gargled the liquid for a few seconds then spat it out, washing out the sink. He rinsed out his cup and toothbrush, placing it back on the counter. 

He ran his fingers through his hair, puffing out his lip when he deemed himself presentable. 

Keitaro turned on his heel and walked over to the door, stretching his arms up. He stopped and looked over his shoulder. 

“Do you need anything else, Taiga?” 

The crimson-eyed scout jumped, shaking his head frantically. 

“N-No… I’m okay…”

Keitaro smiled, “Great. If you need me, I’ll be updating my journal in my bunk. It’s super early, so Sir Aiden probably hasn’t started breakfast yet. See you then?”

Taiga bit his lip, “U-Uh… sure…”

Keitaro nodded, leaving the room without another word. 

Taiga was left standing alone in the bathroom, his heart hammering against his chest. He turned around and faced the mirror, running a hand through his red and gold locks. 

Three days had passed. He thought he’d be ready to bash his own head in at this point. But, not only had Keitaro been… tolerable; but even his other cabin-mates had mellowed out if only a little bit. None of them fought even once yesterday. They just talked. 

Albit, Taiga didn’t actually participate in the conversation. He only listened. But no one made any move to aggravate him for this. And he couldn’t bring himself to start any conflict himself yesterday. 

Every time he thought about it, he thought about how upset Keitaro would be, and it strained his heart. 

Taiga blushed, throwing his hand over his eyes and pulling on his face. 

“Goddammit…”

* * *

_ Journal Entry No. 5: July 11th (06:05) _

_ “Hello! Keitaro here for my entries for day nine and ten of my time here at Camp Buddy! _

_ Now, what’s the best word to describe these last two days… _

_ Awkward. _

_ Taiga has since moved into our cabin, and it’s been a bit on the rough side. His first day here, he barely talked to us, staying in his bed most of the day, until Scoutmaster Yoshi drew him out for a fishing activity we had. Even then, he was pretty distant. He and I teamed up for the activity, and he seemed pretty out of place. When I tried to help him fish, he got super flustered and accidentally flipped out of the boat.  _

_ Then he took me with him. When I tried to help him out of the water, he pushed me away and I also fell into the lake. Because we didn’t want to draw any attention after the sportsfest was so successful, Taiga and I snuck away from the activity to go and take a bath. And… my goodness. I never thought I would take a bath with Taiga of all people. When we were there, I couldn’t help but stare at him. He’s slender but decently well-built in muscle. And I just sat there staring at him! I looked like such an idiot… _

_ But then we talked for a bit. He actually gave me some pretty good advice; it reminded me a lot about my sister. Now that I think about it, I think Taiga would get along well with her. They both have the same ‘I take no shit from no one’ attitudes.  _

_ And then… well, when he tried to leave, he and I ended in a rather... awkward position to say the least. My friends saw it happen too, it was really embarrassing! After that though, I had to put my foot down with how everyone was treating each other. Now I know it’s to be expected, but I still want them to try. I decided that if everyone was unhappy by the end of the week, Taiga could go back to his old cabin. I’ll be honest though, I hope he stays.  _

_ And yesterday, I earned my photography badge! I did so by taking pictures of Taiga building a model boat! I actually got to talk to him some more, without the awkward ‘falling onto each other naked’ part. I ended up spilling out a bit of my life story onto him, but he didn’t seem too mad about it either. And when my boys got back, we all had lunch together in the cabin and chatted for the rest of the day, without incident! PROGRESS!!! _

_ Well, Aiden is probably gonna start breakfast soon, and I need to be ready to wake up my boys. They’re such a hassle, but they’re worth it! I hope today goes well, and by the end of the week, I hope Taiga chooses to stay.  _

_ Yours Truly,  _

_ Keitaro Nagame” _

* * *

Keitaro stuck the last photo into his journal, pressing it down to let the glue settle. He looked at his spread of pictures across his bed, smiling brightly at how his collection was growing. Only a week and a half here at Camp Buddy, and he was making stellar progress!

Once the photo was stuck to the page, Keitaro released his grip, staring at his latest entry with pride. 

He put the cap on the glue stick, placing it back in his pencil bag, and closing the journal, gently caressing its cover. 

He let out a small yawn, rubbing his eyes gently. The sun was still rising, the rays pouring in through the window. 

Keitaro smiled, swinging his legs over the edge of his bed. Climbing to his feet, Keitaro slowly walked across the room, peering out of one of the windows.

The lights in the mess hall were on. Aiden was probably cooking breakfast by now, meaning that Yoshi would wake them up soon, should they have an activity. Knowing his boys might be a bit perturbed about being awakened by the blaring whistle, a smile crawled onto his face. 

He slowly walked away from the window, moving across the room and over to Yoichi’s bed. He’d be the biggest hassle, so he’d need to wake him up first. 

Keitaro lowered himself onto his knees, squatting next to Yoichi’s bed. The large violette was laying on his back, snoring softly. 

Keitaro smiled, reaching up and poking him in the side. 

He squirmed, snorting a bit before rolling over, showing his back to the brunette. Keitaro snickered, reaching up and gently jabbing him in the spine. 

“Mmhhff, the fuck…?” 

Yoichi rubbed his eyes, scratching his back to try and swat the offending feeling away. When he sat up and rolled over, he opened his eyes to see Keitaro peering over the edge of his bed, staring at him silently. 

He rose a brow, “What the fuck? Why did you wake me up…?” 

Keitaro smiled, raising himself up, “I figured you’d appreciate not being woken up by Scoutmaster Yoshi’s whistle.”

The large scout stared down at him wordlessly, brows furrowed grumpily. Keitaro only brightened his smile. 

Yoichi sighed, flopping back down on the bed, letting out a long sigh. 

He saw that as a win, climbing back to his feet. 

Keitaro then skipped away, moving over to Hiro’s bed. As Yoichi got up and walked away, disappearing into the bathroom, Keitaro sat down on the edge of Hiro’s bed. 

The boy squirmed a bit, tucking his blanket into his shoulders. Keitaro chuckled, reaching down to pull them off. 

“Hiro, up, up.”

The boy curled into himself, shivering. 

“Come on, Hiro. You don’t wanna be late for breakfast, do you?” Keitaro cooed, twisting a bit to see him better. 

Hiro groaned, popping a single eye open to look up at him. 

“No… but… I’m so comfyyy…” He whined, rolling over and wrapping his arms around Keitaro’s waist. He let out a long yawn and curled into Keitaro’s side, coiling around him like a snake. 

“Come cuddle with meeeeee…”

Keitaro chuckled, reaching down to pat Hiro’s head, “Maybe later, Hiro. Come on, let’s get you ready for the day, okay?” 

He took Hiro’s wrists and pulled him off of him, making the sleepy scout sit up. Hiro let out a small whimper, puffing his bottom lip out as Keitaro lifted him out of bed, placing him on his feet. 

“Go on now, I’ll join you in a bit,” Keitaro whispered, patting Hiro’s backside to scoot him out of the room.

While Hiro shuffled away sadly, longing to go back to bed, Keitaro silently counted down in his head with each step he took.

_ 3… 2… 1… _

“TORCH-HEAD!!!”

“WOLFBOY!!”

Keitaro smiled, nodding his head to no one in particular. Now they were awake.

He moved over to Natsumi’s bed, surprised that the most punctual of them was still asleep. He smiled as he gazed at Natsumi’s soft features, almost wanting to let him sleep. But, he put his heart away and grabbed Natsumi’s cheeks, squishing them gently. 

“Natsumiiii~”

The bluenette snorted, grabbing the offending hands blindly with confusion. He opened his eyes, seeing Keitaro staring down at him with a bright smile. 

“Breakfast will be ready soon!”

Natsumi yawned, squeezing Keitaro’s hands back, “You’re up before me again. Are you sure you usually sleep in?”

He chuckled, removing his hands to allow Natsumi to sit up, “I had to help someone earlier, that’s what woke me up. But since breakfast will be ready soon, I’d figured I’d wake you up before Yoshi’s whistle does.”

Natsumi laughed, removing his blanket and stepping out of bed. 

“Thank you, Keitaro. I will admit, it’s nicer waking up to you. Would you like me to get Hunter for you?”

He shook his head, “Nah, I got him. Can you go make sure Hiro and Yoichi are getting dressed? They started screaming at each other the moment they were in the same room, so I worry.”

He chuckled, nodding in agreement. He turned and walked towards the bathroom, leaving only Hunter to wake up. 

Smiling, Keitaro skipped over to Hunter’s bed, silently thinking about how’d he’d wake up the last of his cabinmates. 

A sly smile crawled onto his face. 

He tiptoed over to Hunter’s side, watching the small boy squirm gently in his sleep. He silently walked over, lowering himself down to his knees. 

As gently as he could, he snaked his arms underneath Hunter’s back and knees. Once he had a firm grip around the boy, he shifted back onto his feet. 

And hoisted the scout into the air. 

Hunter let out a high-pitched yelp, clinging onto Keitaro’s shoulders. 

“AH! K-Keitaro?!” Hunter kicked his legs around, searching for some semblance of ground. 

“Wakey, wakey! Breakfast is ready!” 

Hunter stared at him blankly, unable to process what just happened. Keitaro only smiled, spinning on his heel and marching towards the bathroom. 

“Wha… breakfast?” Hunter whispered, rubbing his eyes tiredly as Keitaro led them into the bathroom. 

When they walked in, Natsumi was buttoning up his uniform, staring at Hiro and Yoichi firmly. The two other scouts were sitting on either side of the bench, putting on shoes and socks with a pout.

Keitaro chuckled, “What happened?”

Natsumi sighed, his arms falling to his sides. He opened his mouth to explain, but was interrupted. 

“They were fighting. Then they got scolded for it. And now they’re pouting.”

Keitaro turned to see Taiga standing in the corner, fidgeting with the star emblem on his tie. 

Keitaro chuckled, setting Hunter down on the bench in-between Hiro and Yoichi.

“So, nothing out of the ordinary then.”

A nod from Taiga. 

Keitaro smiled, skipping over to his locker. 

“Do you think we’ll have an activity today?” Keitaro asked, pulling off his shirt. 

“I’m not sure. We’ve had nonstop activities for the past couple of days, so we might get a free day today!” Natsumi pulled on his shoes, moving towards the door. 

“Well, I’m going to head to the mess hall and see if we have an activity, now that Keitaro’s mentioned it. I’ll see you guys there!”

“Okay!”

When Natsumi walked out, Keitaro pulled his uniform out of his locker and slipped it over his shoulders. 

“Honestly, I kinda hope we have a free day today. I haven’t had much free time to take pictures of things that aren’t for activities. I also need to put together that poster from our Nature Day activity!”

Taiga rose a brow, “Poster?”

Keitaro nodded, “Yep! For our nature day activity, I took pictures of everyone’s activity! I told Ms. Yuri I’d be compiling them into a scrapbook or poster, but I haven’t gotten a chance to do it! I was hoping to take some extra pictures of nature, so I hope that we have a free day to do that!”

Hunter yawned, finally picking himself up from the bench to get dressed. 

“Mnnn…”

“Are you okay, Hunter?” Keitaro asked, stepping closer to the small blonde. 

“Just… tired…”

The brunette smiled, opening Hunter’s locker, “Here, lemme help you then!”

* * *

Breakfast was quiet. Not many scouts were out and about that morning, even with the smell of food in the air. 

After they finished their meal, the group decided to sit outside in the fresh air. Natsumi had left for the scoutmaster’s cabin to see if they had an activity for the day. 

Keitaro was running a cloth over the lens of his camera, gently cleaning it. He had his photo binder on his left, open to a random page of pictures. Hiro and Hunter were gleefully looking over the pictures, asking questions about each picture he’d taken. 

“You like landscaping, don’t you, Keitaro?” Hunter asked, flipping the page over to find more pictures of different fields and trees. 

“Yeah. Most of the ones in that binder are my first pictures. It’s why the lighting on them is kinda bad.”

“I think they’re good! They have that beginner’s charm to them!” Hunter replied. 

“Thanks!”

Keitaro held his camera closer, peering at the lens carefully, “I was thinking about taking some forest pictures today. At least, if we don’t have an activity already.”

Yoichi sighed, “Where is Mr. Perfect anyway? I’m getting bored!”

Hiro huffed, “Be patient, Wolfboy! He’ll be back soon! The scoutmasters might be busy with something and he has to wait for them!”

He rolled over onto his stomach and groaned. 

Keitaro chuckled, lifting up his camera and peering through the lens, smiling at how clear the frame was, “There we go…”

“I’m back!”

They lifted their heads to see Natsumi approaching them, waving his hand excitedly. When he approached the stairs to their cabin, he stopped a few feet from Keitaro, smiling brightly. 

“Hi, Natsumi! How did it go with the scoutmasters?” Keitaro asked, hanging his camera around his neck. 

Natsumi grinned, “Great! We don’t have an activity today. Scoutmaster Yoshi is giving us a free day to relax since we’ve been doing so many things in the past three days.”

Yoichi pumped his fists into the air, whooping loudly, “Fucking, finally!! I don’t wanna do anything today!”

He flopped onto the porch, sprawling out over the wood to bask in the sunlight. Hunter giggled, scooting to sit closer to him, “I was hoping for a day off too. I wanna do some free drawing today, and there’s a new book I wanna read. Wanna join me, Yoichi?”

“I don’t read.”

“I can read it  _ to _ you.”

“...Fine.”

Hunter clapped his hands happily, receiving a huff from Yoichi. 

Keitaro smiled, pulling himself onto his feet. He stretched himself out, loosening his muscles a bit. 

“Well, if we don’t have an activity, I’m gonna go take some nature photos. Maybe I’ll catch a bird or two…” He chirped, rubbing his chin in thought. 

Hiro laid out, reaching out to pat Keitaro’s leg, “I would join you, but I actually wanna do some cooking today with Bro-Aiden. Show me your pictures when you're done?”

Keitaro nodded. 

While Hunter rushed into the cabin to grab his sketchbook and reading book, Natsumi stood up along with Keitaro, “I’m gonna go ahead and get started on chores since we don’t have an activity!”

Hiro sat up suddenly, pointing at Natsumi, “Heeeeey! What did we talk about yesterday?”

The bluenette flinched, “B-But, it’s just some light chores…”

Hiro narrowed his eyes. 

“Come on, Hiro! I won’t overwork myself, I promise!” He pleaded, slapping his hands together. 

Hiro stood up, his skeptical gaze never wavering, “Alright… but I don’t trust you so I’m going with you to watch you, got it?”

“Mh-hm,” Natsumi nodded in confirmation, his smile returning. 

Keitaro giggled, a light blush dusting his cheeks, “Aww, my boys are bonding~! That makes me so happy!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, flipping onto his side, “Do you have to make it weird?”

Keitaro laced his fingers behind his back, smiling sweetly, “What makes you say that~?”

He received a huff in response. 

Keitaro smiled, turning to Taiga. The red-head was standing at the end of the porch, leaning against the corner of the wooden beams. His gaze was low, but Keitaro had noticed his eyes darting over to them every once in awhile as if he was listening to their conversation. 

Keitaro took a few tentative steps over to him, lowering his head to meet Taiga’s gaze, “What are you gonna do today, Taiga?” 

No answer. 

Taiga crossed his arms, puffing his cheeks out in thought. He tapped his foot aggressively, making Keitaro raise a brow in concern, “Taiga?”

He clicked his tongue, “Sh-shut up! I just… I…”

The entire cabin turned to him, waiting with curiosity for his answer to Keitaro’s question. Why was he acting so weird about this?

“I… um… was wondering… if I could, uh…”

His gaze fell even more, and his grip on his arms tightened. 

Keitaro felt his heart pick up in pace, hammering excitedly against his ribcage. 

“Yes?”

“Could I… go with you… on your nature thing?”

Every jaw dropped. 

Keitaro stared at Taiga with disbelief and bewilderment. A dark blush had dusted over his cheeks, and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. 

“You… you wanna hang out with me?”

Taiga snorted, turning away with an embarrassed face, “W-Well, I-I’ve been kinda curious about photography. A-And you seem decent at it so-”

“OMIGOSH YES!”

Keitaro suddenly leaped across the porch and scooped Taiga into his arms, squeezing the scout tightly. 

Taiga squealed like a startled kitten, swinging his legs around when the ground disappeared from underneath his feet. He sputtered at the force off Keitaro’s grip, remembering that surprising strength Keitaro had displayed before. 

“Oh my goodness, oh my goodness! I’ve been waiting for you to ask me to do something with you! You can _ absolutely _ come with me! I can show you how to take good pictures, find good lighting, OH-! And you can help me put together that Nature Day poster! Hold on, lemme get my bag-”

Keitaro dropped Taiga and spun on his heel, racing back into the cabin at breakneck speed. Taiga stumbled when he touched down, swinging his arms around to find the railing. He took deep breaths, gripping his shirt tightly. 

Before anyone else could ask what happened, Keitaro flew out of the cabin with his camera bag around his chest. They noticed a rolled-up poster sticking out of it, the flap of the bag undone. He had stacked each binder into his bag, and his camera hung around his neck at the ready. 

“H-Hold on-”

“Got my stuff, let’s go!”

“W-Wait-!”

Taiga tried to back away, but his back hit the railing. He was cornered, nowhere to go. Keitaro reached out and grabbed his wrist, pulling him forward. Taiga was then ripped off the railing, stumbling forward clumsily. 

“ _ I suddenly regret this decision!”  _ Taiga squealed, grabbing onto one of the beams. But he was quickly removed, Keitaro’s ascend down the stairs providing him more momentum. 

Without another word, Keitaro drug Taiga into the nearby woods, skipping happily as Taiga barked for him to slow down.

The rest of the group watched on in bewilderment as Taiga was quickly and effectively abducted, never to be seen again. 

Yoichi blinked, “The fuck just happened?”

* * *

Keitaro skipped through the woods with Taiga in tow, eyes peeled for a subject. 

Taiga walked behind him silently, unsure of their destination. They’d been walking for about ten minutes now, and Keitaro had surprisingly said nothing along the way. He was starting to get suspicious.

“So… where are we going?”

Taiga tried to break the ice, getting slightly nervous about how deep they were getting into the woods. 

Keitaro hummed but said nothing in response. 

“H-Hey-”

“THERE!”

Taiga jumped when Keitaro screamed suddenly, skidding to a stop. Taiga tripped over his feet, nearly bumping into him. 

“Wha-What the-”

Keitaro let go of Taiga’s wrist, pulling his bag over his shoulder and dropping it on the floor. He lifted up his camera and walked over to a nearby bush, squatting down to look at a singular flower growing amongst its leaves. 

“Check it out, Taiga! It’s the only one growing! How weird is that?” He asked, pointing to the flower. 

As he began taking pictures, Taiga slowly approached and settled down next to him.

It was a single, pink chrysanthemum. The other ones around it hadn’t bloomed yet, still small and budded. 

Keitaro moved his camera around, looking for a good angle. 

Taiga tilted his head, peering over Keitaro’s shoulder to try and look at the camera’s screen. 

“So… how do you find good lighting?”

Keitaro smiled, “Well, I don’t know any professional techniques. I usually just move the camera around until I find a shot that looks good. But, from the pictures I’ve taken, I’ve seen that making sure your light source is off-screen, and making sure it glorifies the main subject’s key feature works a lot! Like this flower here! It’s the only one that’s bloomed so far. So, I wanna make that clear in the photo, so… I make sure the flower is in the center frame, with a few buds around it, aaaaaand…”

_ *click* _

Keitaro snapped a photo, pulling his camera down to watch it print. 

Taiga watching the picture print, his jaw tightening eagerly. When the photo had fully emerged, Keitaro plucked it off the camera and fanned it. 

“And just a few seconds for the image to show up…”

A few more fans and he flipped the picture around. 

Just like he had explained, the lighting of the sun had eclipsed the chrysanthemum beautifully. The petals were practically glowing, outshining the closed buds around it. 

Keitaro handed Taiga the picture, letting him look it over. 

“Did what I say make sense?”

Taiga nodded, staring at the picture silently. 

“Wanna try?”

The red-head jumped, staring at him with shock, “What?”

“You said you were curious about photography, right? Well, why don’t you try?” He explained, pulling his camera off his neck and holding it out to him. 

Taiga looked at the camera nervously, slowly reaching out and taking it. 

“Um… what do I take a picture of?”

Keitaro shrugged, “I dunno! That’s for you to decide! Look around and see what catches your eye!”

Taiga pursed his lips, looking around the small clearing anxiously. He scanned over the numerous flora around them, seeing if anything looked interesting. 

“Uhhh… oh!”

Taiga moved across the clearing and sat down in front of a small patch of purple flowers. They had tall stocks that swayed gently in the light breeze. Keitaro smiled. 

“Like that bit?”

Taiga nodded, “Yeah. Know what type of flower this is?”

Keitaro walked over and looked at it for a few moments, scratching his head, “Uhhh… oh, it’s on the tip of my tongue.”

Taiga snorted, “Figured as much. This is a bellflower. They only bloom in summertime, and it’s my favorite flower actually. One of my moms’ has a big garden back at home, and she grows this flower a lot.”

Keitaro smiled, “Aww, that sounds lovely! I know a little bit about gardening, but that’s only because Hiro’s mom gardens too.”

Taiga chuckled, “Must be a mom thing.”

“That’s stereotyping, Taiga!”

“Hehehe!”

Taiga looked through the camera again, moving it around a bit. With the sun behind him, he narrowed his eyes in focus as he struggled to find a good angle. 

“Hmmm… damn, not that way. Maybe… fuck!”

Keitaro stifled a laugh, “You okay?”

“I’m fine! The sun is behind me so the lighting looks like shit cause of all these shadows!” He snapped, his frustration boiling over. 

Keitaro sighed, shaking his head. He slowly walked over, moving behind Taiga to peer over his shoulder. When he looked at the screen and saw the flower, he smiled. 

He moved a bit closer and slowly eclipsed his arms over Taiga’s, grabbing the boy’s hands. 

“Here, lemme show you something.”

Taiga’s heart stopped. Keitaro was flushed up against his back, head right next to his. The boy’s hands were resting on top of his, gently squeezing them for control. 

“Even with the sun behind you, you can catch a good angle. In fact, you can use the sun as a lightbulb in a way, framing and highlighting the best parts of your subject. Just pull back a little and move off to not block the rays…”

Keitaro pulled Taiga’s arm back, making his grip on him tightened. Taiga bit his lip, trying to calm his racing heart. 

“And, just decided on whether you want it taken from above, below, or equal to its height. For this flower, I’d recommend above, to highlight the petals.”

He moved Taiga’s arms up, leaning forward into his back a bit more to see the screen. Taiga took in a shaky breath, his grip on the camera tightening. 

“And, there, try taking a picture now!”

Keitaro slowly pulled away, allowing Taiga his space again. 

Taiga sighed in relief, shaking his head a bit to clear it of the thoughts running through them. He peered through the screen, narrowing his eyes in focus. 

_ *click* _

Taiga pressed the small button on the top of the camera, leaning back to let the picture print. 

As soon as it printed, Taiga took it out and fanned it like Keitaro had, waiting for the picture to show up. 

Keitaro watched silently, a small smile on his face. 

“When should I stop?” Taiga asked, shaking the photo around. 

Keitaro grinned, “It should be ready now!”

He stopped, letting the image finish developing. 

When it finally appeared, Taiga held it up. The lighting looked a bit wonky, but the flower was still well shot. 

Keitaro clapped happily, “That looks great, Taiga!” 

The boy rose a brow, “What? It looks like shit compared to yours.”

Keitaro shook his head, “Don’t be silly. It has beginners' beauty! It might have some flaws, but it’s your first picture, so that makes it all the more special!”

Taiga’s cheeks darkened, “Do you  _ really  _ have to say cheesy shit like that?” 

Keitaro chuckled, “Why not?”

He groaned, holding his picture out to Keitaro. 

“So, what do we do now?”

Keitaro clapped, “Now, we can make the poster! I wanted to get a few extra nature shots beforehand! I've needed to complete this poster ever since Nature Day!”

He moved back over the clearing, pulling out the big poster board from his bag. He unrolled it and laid it out, giving it a few pats to make it flat. 

“Okay! Let’s glue down the pictures first, then decorate it later!”

Taiga moved over, watching as Keitaro pulled out a binder from his bag. He opened it up and removed a few pages, sprawling them out on the grass. 

“Okay, so these four I definitely wanna use! And maybe some landscape and flower pictures too! Can we use the one you just took, Taiga?” 

He nodded, handing the picture over to Keitaro. 

Keitaro picked up one of the plastic pages, pulling out a couple of pictures. He reached into his bag and pulled out a glue stick, popping off the cap. 

“Alrighty, let’s get started!” 

Keitaro laid out the pictures, picking up one and smearing some glue over the backside. 

Taiga leaned over, looking down at the picture he’d selected. It was the other members of their cabin, doing their Nature Day activities. 

“So, this is what you guys did for that activity?” He asked, picking up one of the pictures. Keitaro nodded. 

“Yep! Natsumi cleaned the whole camp, Hiro did some gardening, Hunter drew a pretty landscape picture, and Yoichi explored the woods! And I took pictures of all of them! Once I’m done with this poster, we’re gonna hang it up right outside the scoutmaster's office so everyone can see it!”

Taiga hummed, picking up the picture of Hunter. He flipped it over, seeing the date and time printed on the back. 

“For just an instant camera, it’s got a bunch of interesting features to it,” He voiced, picking up the camera to look it over. 

Keitaro smiled, “Yep! It has a few filters, can adjust to lighting, and prints the date and time! If anyone used my camera without me knowing, I’d track them down pretty easily~”

Taiga felt a bit nervous at that statement. 

He put the camera and began fishing through the photos Keitaro would be choosing from. He saw the ones of their other cabinmates, of various flowers, trees, landscapes, and one of-

“What the-”

Taiga held up the photo with shock. It was of… him! Leaning over that flower he had relocated on Nature Day. 

“Um, Keitaro?”

“Yeah?”

Taiga smirked, flipping the picture over to show him, “I didn’t realize you were a stalker~”

Keitaro looked up in confusion, but his face contorted to shock and fear when he saw the photo he was holding up. 

“A-AH! T-Taiga, I can explain-!”

“Got some weird crush on me, do ya?”

“N-N-No, it’s not like that! I-I just saw you moving that flower and I-I was already t-taking pictures so I thought-”

Taiga watched as Keitaro flailed his arms around and tried to explain himself. He sniggered, letting out a sudden snort. 

Keitaro stopped, his breath catching in his throat. 

Taiga burst out laughing, clutching his stomach tightly. His cheeks were red, and a few tears were leaking from his eyes, and fell into hysterics, falling over onto his back. 

Keitaro stared at him silently, bewildered at the reaction he was receiving. This was… Taiga? Wasn’t it? Shouldn’t he be… angry?

Taiga struggled to sit up, wiping his eyes free of tears, “Hahaha! You really are an idiot, are you?”

Keitaro gapped. 

“Look, I’m not at this thing. A bit, weirded out if I’m being honest, but I’m not gonna take it personally. I’m not a monster. Put on it your poster, that book of yours, under your pillow~”

“T-Taiga!”

“Hehehe, just calm down, you’re gonna pop a blood vessel,” He chuckled, tossing the picture back to Keitaro. 

“I… I can put it on the poster…?” He asked in shock, his eyes full of hope. Taiga shrugged, “Do what you want.” 

Keitaro squealed, picking up the glue stick excitedly. He smeared the glue over the backside of the picture, pressing it down onto the poster board excitedly. 

Taiga rolled his eyes, watching silently as Keitaro began plastering the pictures of his cabin mates over the poster. 

“Wanna put some of the pictures on, Taiga?” Keitaro suddenly asked, holding out a spare glue stick. Taiga stared down at it silently, mulling over whether or not he should take it.

He sighed, slowly reaching up and taking the item, making Keitaro smile happily. 

Taiga picked up a picture, popping the cap off and covering the back with glue. 

His eyes narrowed. 

Why was he doing this? Just three days ago he practically hated this boy with every fiber of his being. Now, he had offered to go with him on this little photo excursion. It wasn’t even an activity, they had a free day today. He could’ve just stayed in bed and done nothing, ignoring everyone as he had been. 

But… something was compelling him to stay out today. He looked up at Keitaro, the brunette focused solely on the poster. 

Was it… him? 

Despite all he’d done in their first week to make his time here miserable, Keitaro had welcomed him into their cabin with open arms. He’d even convinced his friends to at least… try and give him a chance. 

A chance. The one thing he’d wanted. Was that it?

“Taiga?”

He gasped, snapping from his thoughts. Keitaro was looking up at him worriedly, his brows furrowed. 

“Are you okay? You zoned out there for a moment…” He asked, leaning forward a bit. 

Taiga shook his head, huffing angrily, “I-I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

Taiga glared darkly at Keitaro, the nervousness in his heart rising back up. 

“Hey… question for you.”

Keitaro’s eyes widened, “Y-Yes?”

Taiga looked down at his hands, his heart hammering against his chest. 

“Why are you being so nice to me?”

Keitaro titled his head, “What do you mean?”

Taiga snorted, “You know what I mean. The moment you and I met, I did nothing but make your stay here a living hell at every opportunity I could. But, instead of hating me, you just kept giving me chances to be your friend. And when you could’ve sent me away or humiliated me at the sportsfest you just… took me into your cabin. Why?”

Keitaro smiled, placing down the last picture, “I told you why, the day I did it. I want to get to know you Taiga, know why you do the things you do. And I can’t do that if you live apart from me and well, as you said, try to make my stay here a ‘living hell’.”

Taiga stared at him silently, pondering over his statement. 

Keitaro smiled at him, turning back to the poster to glue on another picture. 

“Remember, if you’re unhappy by the end of the week, you’re free to go back to your old cabin. All I ask is that you give us a chance.” 

Taiga opened his mouth to speak, but closed it. 

How should he respond to that?! He stared down at the poster with narrowed eyes, unsure of what to do. Keitaro hummed happily as he placed the pictures down, reaching in and out of his bag. 

Taiga reached into the bag and pulled out the small pack of markers he brought, looking down at the poster. 

_ “Hmmm~ Loo-li-loo-li-lai-lay~” _

Taiga’s ears perked. That tune. It was the same one that Keitaro was always humming to himself when he was working on his journal. 

He remembered the conversation he and his cabin had about it at breakfast his first day with them. 

“Um, Keitaro?”

“Hmm?” Keitaro looked up, popping the cap back onto the glue stick. 

“That song you’re always singing… where’s it from?”

Keitaro grinned, “My mother wrote it. She always sang it to my sister, who in turn sang it to me. My mother passed away though. That song is all I know of her, other than what my sister told me.”

Taiga's eyes fell, “I know that feeling all too well…”

Keitaro gasped, “Did you lose a family member too?”

Taiga shrugged, “In a way. My dad. He and my mom divorced when I was young. He asked to choose between him and my mother and I… didn’t know what to do. I wanted my dad to stay with us but Ma… she looked so sad. I couldn’t leave her. So, my Dad told me that if I ever wanted to come to him, he’d be there. And then he just left…”

Keitaro slowly turned to him. 

“I’m not sure why he left us. I think… he did it for himself, to be happy. I was really hurt at first. Were we not enough? But… if he’s truly happy on his own, wherever he is now, that’s all I could ask for.”

Keitaro looked down, “What happened to your mom?”

To the scout’s shock, Taiga smiled. It was bright, happy, and serene. 

“Oh, Ma? She’s great. She was sad for a while, but she had Mada with her. They supported each other through the whole thing, and got married when I was ten or so.”

Keitaro rose a brow, “M… Mada?”

“My other mom. I call her ‘Mada’, since she kinda acts like a Dad, but also a Mom. Apparently, I started calling her that when I was like… four? She was my Nanny before she and Ma married.”

Keitaro smiled, “Aww, that’s so sweet!”

Taiga snorted, “Eh, my family life was kinda strainy in the beginning, but it worked out. Now, to ask  _ you _ a question.”

Keitaro jumped, Taiga pointing a finger at him. 

“I remember something weird from a few days ago at breakfast, my first day with you losers. Blondie was about to ask you something, but that friend of yours stopped him. Because we were talking about your mom, so I think he was gonna ask about your dad. Why’d Hiro stop him?” He asked, crossing his arms. 

Silence. 

The marrow of Keitaro’s bones seemed to freeze. His eyes widened, and he slowly looked down at his lap. 

**_Why… Why do you fail me every time?_ **

Keitaro’s teeth clenched. 

**_You’re not enough, you never will be!_ **

His lip tightened. 

**_Why do I even bother…_ **

“Keitaro?”

The brunette snapped up, his eyes widening in shock. Taiga was staring at him with narrowed eyes, “Are you okay?”

Keitaro took in a deep breath, nodding his head shakily. 

“Remember what I said this morning… about how I don’t let my demons run my life?” He asked, rubbing his arms. 

Taiga leaned back, nodding nervously. 

“He’s one of them.”

Taiga’s eyes widened. He parted his lips to speak once more.

“Don’t. Please. I can’t. I can’t talk about him. It’s too… too painful…”

Taiga closed his mouth. 

This was why Hiro stopped Hunter. They’d get  _ this _ reaction. 

“Sorry… I… I shouldn’t have asked…” Taiga looked down at the ground, a throb of guilt in his chest. 

Keitaro sighed heavily, shaking his head. 

“Hey, it’s alright. You didn’t know. I don’t blame you for that.”

Taiga sighed. 

They fell into silence. 

“Hey, Taiga?”

“Yeah?”

Keitaro looked up at him, a bright smile on his face. 

“Thanks.”

Taiga rose a brow, “For… what?”

“Coming out here with me. It makes me feel like… you actually wanna know me as a person. You even called me by my name! You usually call me an idiot or a dummy, so…”

Taiga blushed, turning away, “D-Don’t take it the wrong way! I just… had nothing else to do today!”

Keitaro chuckled, “Okay, Taiga. Thank you could bond with my boys, too?”

“Don’t push it.”

Keitaro laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. 

Taiga crossed his arms, huffing like a child. 

“Hey, Taiga?”

“What?”

Keitaro twiddled his thumbs together, “Could I.. give you a hug?”

Taiga’s jaw dropped. A dark blush raced across his cheeks as he whirled around to face him, jaw shaking, “Wh-What?!”

“A hug! I wanted to give you one this morning to help but I figured I should ask first. Sooo…”

Keitaro grinned, moving up onto his knees to lean towards Taiga, who scooted back. 

“D-Don’t you dare! I’m not a ‘hug-y’ person!”

“Then why is your face red?”

“Cause you asked me a dumb question! Th-That’s why!”

“Really? You sure~”

“Keitaro I swear-”

“I don’t care what you say, you’re my friend now and  _ my _ friends get HUGS!”

Keitaro rolled his shoulders and jumped at the red-head, who screeched in terror. He tried to run, scrambling on his hands and knees as he tried to stand. But he wasn’t quick enough. Keitaro slammed into him, wrapping his arms around the squawking scout. 

“H-hEY! LET ME GO!”

“Nope~”

Keitaro squeezed him tighter, snuggling Taiga closely. 

Taiga blushed feverishly, his lip quivering as his heart hammered against his chest, “I-I’m gonna smack you in a minute if you don’t-”

“I’ll be here if you need me, Taiga. Remember that.”

Taiga stopped, looking over his shoulder in shock. Keitaro had buried his face into Taiga’s back, hiding his gaze and subsequent blush. 

He turned back around, trying to push his own blush down from his cheeks. 

They sat there silently, the only noise coming from the birds that fluttered in the trees around them. 

Taiga lowered his head, his lip quivering. 

He held back a few tears. 

And smiled. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
> 
> Man writer's block is a pain in my ASS! But, I got it done in the end! And hey, this is even being uploaded ON STREAM!
> 
> I have little itty bitty streams outside the scheduled ones, for some diversity and fun!
> 
> But, streams and headaches aside, lets get to the meat of the chapter! 
> 
> This chapter, I wanted to dive in and have Keitaro and Taiga get to know each other better. I'm pretty sure you guys know what's happening in that nightmare Taiga had~ 
> 
> Not fun things. 
> 
> And Keitaro opens up a weeeee bit more, but shoots down any talk about his dad. Seems like his biggest demon is rooted to him, wonder why~~??
> 
> And yes, Taiga has TWO moms in Sleepsong!! It wasn't my idea tho. I have to thank my dear proof-reader @Art3mis8194 for that idea. The two characters were created and belong to her, I only asked for permission to use them in Sleepsong. We'll hear more about them much later, much like Keitaro's dear sister. 
> 
> And I shamelessly took inspiration from The Dragon Prince on how to describe a divorce situation from the child's perspective. 
> 
> These two are finally bonding, now, we'll need some bonding with the other boys to complete the circle! 
> 
> And with that, we're all done! For updates on CB: Sleepsong (and other shenanigans), follow me on Twitter @TiraminaFW! And, if you wanna watch the making of Sleepsong live while I play Camp Buddy, come join me on Picarto every Sunday at 0630 GMT (+9)!! 
> 
> NEXT TIME: 
> 
> After a free day, another activity is scheduled. This time around, Keitaro is asked to assist Yoshi in the project, and is pulled away from the group, leaving Taiga alone with the others. How is the activity going to work, and can the five find a way to bond without Keitaro there to supervise?
> 
> STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!!!
> 
> Let's Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	14. Day 12: The Circle Grows

Keitaro stood in front of the mirror, gently fussing with his hair. The water of the sink was running quietly, providing him a quick way of washing his face and flattening any loose strands of hair. 

“So, this is the famous ‘I-sleep-in-late’, Keitaro?” 

From behind him, he heard Taiga approaching, already in uniform, and ready to go. 

Keitaro pouted, looking down at his disheveled state. He was still in his pajamas, having woken up only about ten minutes ago. When he looked at his alarm clock, he was shocked to see that it was almost nine. 

“Well, no one woke me up, so of course I slept in!” Keitaro cried, trying to defend himself. But Taiga only snorted. 

“Seeing as how you woke yourself every day since I got here, I didn’t see a need. And those friends of yours didn’t want to disturb you either. Said you looked ‘too cute’ to wake up,” Taiga explained, leaning against the nearby wall. 

Keitaro pouted, a light blush dusting his face. 

“I can’t believe I slept through my alarm! How did it wake  _ you  _ up but not me?” Keitaro whined, moving away from the mirror and towards his locker to pull out his uniform. 

Taiga only shrugged, turning away, “Beats me.”

Keitaro huffed, stripping off his sleeping attire to put on his uniform. His stomach growled as he did so, making him curl into himself with embarrassment. 

“Hehe, if you’re hungry, hurry up!”

Keitaro pouted, “You’re just standing there staring at me! It’s weird!”

“Now you know how  _ I _ feel~”

“Shush!”

Taiga chuckled, watching as Keitaro quickly pulled his uniform on, fluffing his hair a bit as he buttoned up his shirt. 

“Okay, I think I’m ready! Are the boys outside?” 

Taiga nodded, “They insisted on waiting for you.”

Keitaro smiled, pulling his shoes out of his locker. Quickly slipping them on, Keitaro bounced forward towards the doorway, hobbling on one foot. 

“Why don’t you sit down before you fall flat on your face?” Taiga suggested, following behind Keitaro, who leaned on the nearby wall when he nearly lost his balance. 

“Case in point.”

Keitaro pouted, finally pulling on his other shoe. 

He decided not to reply to Taiga’s tease, and instead opened the front door, welcoming the sight of the rest of his cabin. 

“Finally! I’m starving, let’s go!” Yoichi cried, throwing his arms in the air. He hopped down the stairs, immediately booking it to the mess hall. 

“Yoichi! Wait for us! Don’t run off!” Natsumi called out, crossing his arms with a huff. 

Keitaro shook his head, patting the tall scout on the shoulder, “It’s alright, Natsumi! It’s my fault for sleeping in so late.”

Hiro shook his head, “Don’t beat yourself up, Keitaro. You deserved to sleep in a little bit after waking up so early three days in a row!” 

Keitaro sighed, his shoulders sagging a bit. 

With all six of them dressed for the day, they made their way to the mess hall after Yoichi. 

“So, Keitaro? How did you sleep?” Hunter asked, skipping over and gently grabbing Keitaro’s arm. 

“I slept alright. I usually sleep well, I’m not much of a dreamer. So once I hit the pillow, I fall right asleep!” He answered, patting Hunter’s hand.

“You don’t… dream?” Hunter looked up at him worriedly, squeezing his arm gently. Keitaro shook his head. 

“No, I do. Just not often. I’ll usually only dream when I’m either really happy, or really sad. There isn’t much of an in-between,” He explained, rubbing the back of his head. 

Natsumi rubbed his chin in thought, “That’s so interesting! I usually dream about something every night! Most of the time it’s about new ways I can help out!”

When they reached the door to the mess hall, Yoichi was standing by the entrance, an unamused look on his face. He stared at Natsumi with a cocked brow, “Wow… you’re even lame in your sleep.”

Natsumi sighed in return. 

Keitaro chuckled, moved forward to open the door, “Alright boys, that’s enough. Come on, let’s go eat!”

The group fell silent at Keitaro’s command, walking into the mess hall in an orderly fashion. 

The mess hall was packed full of campers and the smell of fresh food wafted through the air. This time of the morning was always the most busy, making the line extra long. 

When they stepped in fully, Yoichi groaned at the sight of the line, titling his head back. 

“Aw, come on! Why’s the line so damn long!?” 

Hiro sighed, shaking his head, “Stop whining, Wolfboy! The longer we wait, the longer the line gets, so come on!”

He grabbed Yoichi’s hand and drug the scout forward. Keitaro chuckled, following the two in line. 

When they all queued in and got their food, they had to wait a few minutes for a table to open up. Once a spot freed up, they sat down to eat. 

“What kind of activity do you think we’ll have today?” Keitaro asked, glancing at Natsumi. 

“Hmm, knowing Scoutmaster Yoshi, since we had a free day yesterday… we’ll either have a small activity to ease us back into our usual routine, or… we’ll have a giant activity like the sportsfest.” 

Taiga rose a brow, “Really?”

Natsumi winced, nodding nervously, “Y-Yeah…” 

Keitaro sighed mentally, noticing the tension between them. While he and Taiga were starting to get along after three days, he noticed the rest of his boys were still weary around him. He knew Yoichi and Natsumi’s reasoning, having a whole history with him. Hunter was nervous in general due to Taiga’s intense demeanor, and Hiro often held a grudge, especially with how Taiga had treated him in their first week. 

Keitaro closed his eyes, racking his brain for a good idea to get them to bond. It seemed like he had to be there for them to even consider starting a conversation with each other. 

He wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt, but he was worried they might cause a commotion should he leave them unsupervised with Taiga. 

What should he do?

“Attention!”

Keitaro jumped, hearing Yoshi’s booming voice erupt behind them. 

He looked over his shoulder, seeing Yoshi standing in the doorway with Yuri at his side. 

“Good morning, scouts! I trust you all had a good night’s sleep after your free day yesterday!” Yoshi clapped his hands, smiling brightly. 

While a few of the scouts responded to his question, Yoichi only slumped in his seat, “How the hell is he so chipper… it’s too early for this…”

Keitaro reached out and rubbed his back, smiling sympathetically. 

“Now I know you all are probably a bit worn from your free day, so we’re gonna do a small activity today-”

_ “Oh, thank god.” _

_ “Shush!” _

Hiro shushed Yoichi, who stuck out his tongue. 

“-And it’s gonna be a simple badge-earning activity!”

“ _ I take it back.” _

Keitaro placed a hand on Yoichi’s head, patting it a few times. 

“You scouts are free to do what you’d like for this activity! We have a multitude of badges for you to earn, so try and earn one you haven’t collected! If you need any assistance, your scoutmasters are here to help you at any given time!” Yoishi added, receiving a reinforcing nod from Yuri. 

“That’s right! Now, in case you’ve forgotten since last time, I’ll be in charge of the more creative badges; Aiden will be in charge of physical activity, and Yoshi will be leading for the rest of them! Don’t be afraid of asking any questions!”

Yoshi nodded, “That’s right! Now, once you finish off your breakfast, you’re free to start!”

The scouts gave off verbal confirmation, most of them turning back to their food. 

Keitaro clapped his hands, bouncing in his seat, “Yay! Another badge activity! I wonder what I should do this time?”

Natsumi smiled, “If you want a reference, I have the Camp Buddy: Badge Handbook with me at all times! You can look it over if you’d like!” 

“ _ Keitaro! _ ”

Before he could reply to Natsumi’s suggestion, Keitaro heard his name called. He turned around to see Yuri quickly skipping towards him, her hands behind her back. 

“Hello, dear! I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” She asked, leaning down to get eye level with him. 

“Oh, not at all, Ms. Yuri! Did you need something?” He asked. 

Yuri nodded, “Actually, yes! I was hoping you could help Yoshi and I with something today! You told me yesterday that the poster you made for Nature Day is done, right?”

He nodded. 

“Well, we wanna put it up for the other scouts to see, but we wanted your opinion on it’s placement. And, Yoshi was actually really impressed how you came up with something so unique for an activity! He actually wanted to ask you to look over some ideas he had!” 

Ketaro’s jaw dropped, “Wh-What? But isn’t that a scoutmaster thing?”

Yuri giggled, “Hehe, yes. But Yoshi seems to trust you quite a lot! If you don’t want to, I’ll let him know, no hard feelings-”

“N-No, I want to, Ms. Yuri! I was just surprised, is all!” Keitaro jumped up, waving his hands around. Yuri smiled, clapping happily. 

“Excellent! Thank you, Keitaro!”

Keitaro smiled, turning around to face his boys, “You guys don’t mind, do you?”

Hiro shook his head, “Of course not, Keitaro! You go ahead, we’ll figure out our activities!”

Keitaro smiled, grabbing his plate and standing up, “Alright then! I hope you boys can find a nice way to bond without me here! Be nice to each other, okay~”

He rose a playful brow at Taiga, who rolled his eyes.

“Wait, you want us to do an activity… together? W-With-”

“Yep! Don’t let me down now! Lead the way, Ms. Yuri!  _ Toodles~ _ ”

Yuri chuckled at Keitaro’s little challenge. She turned around and waved Keitaro towards her, leading him away for the rest of the day. 

It was like a ten-ton wait had been dropped on them. 

Taiga slowly looked over at the other four, sweat dripping down his neck. 

They slowly stared back. 

Keitaro was gone for the rest of the day, and wanted them all to do an activity together. They hardly talked to each other!

What now!?

* * *

The air in the cabin was stiff. 

Hunter had his nose buried in his book, scanning over the pages quickly, but it was hard to tell if he was actually reading or not. 

Hiro and sitting back to back with Yoichi, who in turn had his arms crossed. They were sitting there silently, their eyes down in their laps. 

Natsumi was standing in the middle of the room, tapping his foot worriedly as he looked around the room for something to clean or organize, to which he found nothing. 

And Taiga was up in his bunk as usual, laying flat on his stomach with his arms crossed in front of him. He drummed his fingers against the wood of the bed frame, his eyes set on the floor. 

The silence was deafening. 

Natsumi let out a long sigh, crossing his arms. 

“Soooo… ummm… a-anyone have any ideas…?” 

He was met with silence.

Hunter drummed his fingers against his book, eyes darting around nervously. He slowly lowered his book, looking up at Natsumi. 

“Umm… N-Natsumi? Do you have that badge book with you?” 

The scout turned to him, brow raised in curiosity, but nodded nonetheless, “O-Of course! I always have it on me.”

He rummaged through his pockets, pulling out the small, thick book. He walked over to Hunter and handed it to him, the blonde putting down his own read to look over the small pages. 

“If none of us can think of anything, maybe there’s something in  _ here _ that we can do?” He suggested, scanning over the table of contents carefully. 

Hiro hummed, “That doesn’t seem like a bad idea.”

“I agree. We all have different interests, so maybe finding something we’re all willing to try together is our best bet.” Natsumi sat down next to Hunter, looking over his shoulder to see their potential options. 

Yoichi huffed, crossing his arms with annoyance, “Come on, that book has nothing but lame options. And too many instructions on the simplest things!”

Hiro gently slapped Yoichi’s arm, narrowing his eyes. 

“Come on, Wolfboy! Keitaro asked us to do an activity together! Do you want to let him down and make him sad?” He scoffed, turning halfway to face him. Yoichi huffed, looking down at his lap without an answer. 

Hunter sighed from across the room, flipping through the handbook, “I’m not seeing anything that we all could do together, or anything we all have in common…” 

Natsumi quietly asked for the book, taking it from Hunter to look through the pages. 

“There has to be something in here… how about boating?” 

Yoichi huffed, “I hate boats, they’re too cramped.” 

“Okay then, ummmm, how about… maybe we could try a short hike?” 

Hunter twiddled his thumbs, looking down at his feet, “I don’t know if I’m up for a hike…”

Natsumi sighed in defeat, closing the book and placing it down on the bed beside him, “Come on, guys! There has to be something we’re all interested in! Maybe we could just go for an easy badge? Fishing or… crafting maybe?”

“I already hate the arts and crafts stuff, so why would I do that?”

“Come on, Yoichi! At least Natsumi’s trying to give us some ideas!”

As Hiro and Yoichi descended into another argument with Hunter trying to break them up, and Natsumi deep in thought, Taiga eyeballed the small book from his bunk. 

He narrowed his eyes, slowly hanging over the edge of his bunk to get a better look at it. He pursed his lips, eyes darting between the book and Natsumi. 

“Umm… hey.”

Natsumi snapped out of his trance, looking up at Taiga, “Y-Yes?”

“Mind if I… take a look at that thing?”

Natsumi’s eyes widened in shock. He stared at Taiga silently for a few moments, processing the rather docile request. He picked up the pocket guide and lifted it up, handing it to Taiga, “S-Sure, go ahead.”

Taiga nodded, taking the guide and sitting back up in his bunk. He flipped through the pages, scanning over each badge quickly to try and find something to do. It didn’t seem like there would be a singular activity for them to work on, as they all had differing interests. 

Taiga hummed, biting his lip in thought, “Come on…”

There was fishing, hiking, bouldering, crafting, swimming, photography, gifting-

“Gifting?”

Taiga stopped, flipping back to the previous page. He read over the small description of the activity. 

_ “Gifting is the act of creating something unique for a person you care about. It can be a singular object or even multiple from different people. Multiple gifts are often comprised into gift baskets, which can be detailed by-” _

“Ugh, leave to Yoshi to write a book on gift baskets…” Taiga groaned, rolling his eyes when the paragraph continued on for half a page. 

He looked down at the ground level, seeing his cabin mates still bickering over what they should try and do. 

Taiga cleared his throat, leaning over his bunk. 

The room went quiet as all eyes turned to him. He opened the book and held it down, pointing at the article. They all leaned in to see. 

“Gifting? That’s an activity?” Hiro asked, raising a brow. Natsumi bobbed his head. 

“Oh absolutely! We often do activities where we make something and give it out to other scouts as acts of friendship! Though, we’ll most of the time get the badge for what we’re creating, and not the actual gifting process.”

Yoichi cocked a brow, “Why this one? Seems as lame as the rest.”

Taiga sighed, furrowing his eyes together. He needed to keep calm and explain his idea. 

“W-Well, it’s pretty obvious we all have different interests and can’t agree on something for the life of us. So, instead of doing an activity for  _ us _ , per say, why not for Keitaro?”

They all looked up in confusion. 

“For Keitaro? What do you mean?” Natsumi asked, looking over the description. 

Taiga rolled over, hooking his legs on the edge of his bunk to hang over the side. 

“Well, if we can’t all do the same thing, why not do what we do best and compile it? Hunter likes art, so maybe he can draw something. Hiro’s a good cook, so he could make something. Natsumi and Yoichi, I’m not too sure what your personal hobbies are. And I could even decorate a basket if they’ve got any. If Keitaro wants us to earn a badge together, why not make something to give to him?”

Silence. 

“J-Just a thought I was having…”

They stared at him with bewilderment. 

“That’s… not a bad idea, Taiga! I actually haven’t gotten a badge in gifting inself!” Natsumi cried, clapping his hands happily.

“Yeah! I’d never pass up an opportunity to cook, especially for Keitaro!” Hiro whooped loudly, pumping his fists into the air. 

Hunter looked down at his hands, a small smile crawling on his face, “I’ve… I've been wanting to make a portrait of Keitaro for a while now… m-maybe this is the time to do it…”

Yoichi hummed, “Eh, I can’t really make things. But… maybe I could find a not so boring way to give it to him. I’ve already got the perfect idea!”

Natsumi gasped, “OH! I know what I could do! I told Keitaro I’d catch a beetle for him back on our first hike, and I haven’t done it yet! Wow, Taiga! You’re a genius!” 

The red-head felt his face grow warm, watching they all discussed what they’d contribute excitedly. 

“So, Taiga. Are you gonna make something too?” Hunter asked, scooting over to look up at him. 

He lifted himself up, moving down the latter to the ground floor. 

“I’m good with my hands, so I can make most anything as long I have the materials and some instructions. If given the time, I could even  _ make _ a basket, as long as I have what I need.”

Hunter gasped, “You can weave baskets!?”

Taiga rubbed the back of his head, “W-Well… kind of. I guess… it’s a  _ little  _ bit similar to knitting and such, maybe…”

“Wait, can you knit!?”

Taiga blushed, “I-I’ve dabbled a bit…”

Hunter’s eyes sparkled, “R-Really? That’s so cool!!” 

Before they could go on, Natsumi clapped his hands and rose to his feet. 

“Okay! Now that we’ve found an activity, we need to get started! Okay, Hiro! You’ll be cooking something for Keitaro! Hunter will be making some art, I’ll go catch him that beetle I’ve been meaning to! Yoichi, what’s you plan?”

Yoichi hummed, “I could get Yuki to take the basket to him…”

Natsumi rose a brow, “Yuki? You mean your pet?” 

Yoichi nodded, “Yeah. She’s easy to train, so I could probably get her to take the stuff to Keitaro, as long as we do it where the scoutmasters won’t see.”

Hunter smiled, “Aww, that sounds so cute!”

Hiro cocked a brow, “I didn’t know you had a dog, Wolfboy! That’s fitting for you~”

“Shut it.”

Taiga sighed, placing a hand on his chest in relief. It worked, thank goodness. 

“Alright, let’s get started! And make sure Keitaro doesn’t find out, okay! Let’s make it a surprise!” Natsumi cheered, jumping up and rushing out the door, leaving the others behind. 

“Oi, slow down Mr. Perfect!” Yoichi got up and chased after Natsumi, disappearing out the front door. 

Hiro slowly stood up, stretching his arms up, “Welp, I’m off to the kitchen. I’m thinking maybe a pie of some kind for him. I’ll see you later!”

Taiga sighed, slowly standing up “Well, I guess I’ll go see if they have basket stuff. Or just a basket I could add some flair to.”

Hunter stood up as well, “I need to go to the scoutmaster’s office to get some art supplies from Ms. Yuri. M-Mind if I join you?”

Taiga shook his head, “No.”

Hunter smiled, moving to Taiga’s side, walking alongside him as they exited the cabin and made their way towards the scoutmasters cabin. 

“S-So, Taiga… you said you’ve dabbled in knitting. Are there other things like that you’ve done?” Hunter asked, looking up at Taiga expectantly. 

The redhead hummed, pursing his lips in thought, “Well, I’ve done sewing, crocheting, cross-stitching, felting, modeling, really anything that gives me something to put my hands on.”

Hunter’s eyes sparkled, “Wow! That’s amazing! Does anyone know you can do all that stuff?”

“Eduard and Lee do. Last year, before the… incident, Eduard ripped a huge hole in his robe. It was a nightmare, he was crying all day about it. Eventually, I found some old sewing supplies in the scoutmaster’s cabin and patched it up for him.”

“Aww, that’s really nice of you, Taiga!” Hunter chirped, causing a dark blush to race across Taiga’s cheeks. 

“I-It’s nothing. Eduard hovered over me the whole time while I was fixing it, and Lee just kept making comments on my techniques,” He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to play it off. 

But Hunter only scooted a bit closer, “Where did you learn all this stuff, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

Taiga shook his head, “Mostly on my own. My moms’ would give me pointers if they knew anything about the new hobby. They insisted on hanging up the stuff I made, even if most of it’s pretty shitty.”

When they reached the scoutmaster’s cabin, Taiga opened the door and held it ajar, motioning for Hunter to go in before him. 

After the two entered the cabin, they saw Yuri sitting on the couch, scribbling some done hastily into a small notebook. 

“Um, Ms. Yuri?” Hunter whispered, waving his hand a bit to get her attention. 

The scoutmaster’s ear twitched, and she shot up quickly, snapping the notebook shut. 

“Oh! Hello, Mr. Springfield! Here for some supplies for your badge?” 

He nodded, “Yes, me and Taiga both, actually.”

Yuri’s eyes widened, “Oh! Mr. Akatora? You’re doing an activity with Hunter today?”

He nodded, “Yeah, with my whole cabin, save Keitaro. We’re doing the ‘Gift-Giving Badge’. We’re gonna make a gift basket for Keitaro and fill it with things we’ve made. I was wondering if you had a-”

“AAAIEEE!!”

Yuri suddenly screeched, throwing her journal and pencil aside and flying off the couch. 

Taiga and Hunter jumped in fright and had barely any time to react before Yuri had scooped Taiga in her arms. 

“OMIGOSH, MR. AKATORA!! HAVE THE FEELINGS OF LOVE FINALLY SURFACED!?! And for  _ all _ of you to be making this basket of LOVE, it’s just so- KYAAA!! I CAN’T BELIEVE I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE HAREM IJUSTCANT-”

“H-Hey! Let me go, woman!” 

Taiga kicked and squirmed as Yuri spun him around happily, squealing at the top of her lungs.

“Oh my, you HAVE to tell what kind of gift you’re making for little Keitaro! This is  _ crucial _ information for some fanfics I’ve been thinking about, please I NEED THIS!!”

“U-Um, Ms. Yuri-”

“If you don’t have any ideas, I have PLENTY of things you could try. This is so exciting!”

“Ms. Yuri-”

“OH! There’s this one fanfic I wrote that had something like this no if you’re willing to get a little dirty it’ll be fantastic for both parties-”

“MS. YURI!”

Taiga and Yuri’s heads snapped around at the sound of Hunter yelling. When they turned to face him, his eyes were squeezed shut and he had his fists clenched tightly. 

He popped open an eye and suddenly gasped, throwing his hands over his mouth, “A-Ah! I-I-I’m so sorry, Ms. Yuri!! I didn’t mean to yell at you, I-I just-”

“Oh, don’t worry dear! Anyway, Mr. Akatora, what did you need?”

She suddenly let Taiga go, the boy yelping as he was dropped. He landed on his feet, shaking himself a bit and fixing his uniform. 

“A-Anyway, as I was  _ trying _ to ask; do you guys have a basket here, and if not, maybe a basket weaving kit or something? We need something to put Keitaro’s gifts in.”

Yuri laced her fingers together, smiling sweetly, “Aww, that’s so precious! We DO have a basket actually, but it’s a little small. I hope that’ll be okay.”

Taiga nodded, “Yeah, that’s fine. Do you have any decorating supplies then? I’ll just gussy it up so that it looks decent.”

Yuri nodded, “We sure do! Gimmie a few minutes boys!”

She turned on her heel and walked into the other room, leaving Taiga and Hunter alone once more. 

Hunter sighed, his arms falling to his sides limply. Taiga rose a brow, “What’s the sigh for?”

The small scout rubbed his arms, “I didn’t expect Ms. Yuri to react like that since you’re hanging out with us. I kinda feel responsible in a way…”

But Taiga only huffed, shaking his head in disagreement, “Nah, it’s not your fault that woman’s off her rocker. I’m used to it by now to be honest.” 

Hunter giggled, “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it if I’m honest.”

Taiga snorted, cracking a half smile. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, closing his eyes as they waited for Yuri to gather whatever it was she was getting.

Hunter looked down at his feet, twiddling his thumbs together. 

He looked up at Taiga nervously, biting his lip. 

“U-Um, Taiga?”

“Hm?”

“E-Earlier, you said that your moms’ hang up the stuff you make, right?” 

Taiga nodded, “Yeah, they’re pretty insistent on it. The fridge in our house is absolutely  _ covered _ in shitty pictures I made when I was a kid. But, I guess it’s a parent thing. I just wish they wouldn’t take guests on ‘tours’ of this stuff when we had them.”

As Taiga flushed at the memory, Hunter smiled sadly, “Well… that sounds wonderful to me. Makes me wish that my parents hung up my stuff…”

Taiga turned a little, seeing Hunter’s face looking dejected, “They don’t? Do they not like your work?”

Hunter suddenly shook his head, “N-No, they do! They say it's a nice hobby for me to have, but they’re uncomfortable with me wanting a career out of it.”

Taiga’s face scrunched up, “Really? Not very supportive of you, huh?”

Hunter shook his head again, “O-Oh no, Taiga! They’re very kind, and loving. They just would prefer me to go into business like them, say it’s the safest route for me. I understand where they’re coming from, I really do. I’m not too bothered by it.”

“You’re a bad liar.”

The blonde winced at Taiga’s harsh tone.

“If your parents love and support you as you say, they need to understand that your life is  _ yours  _ to live, not theirs. They can want you to go into business all they want, but if it’s not your life’s ambition, then they need to back off and let you find yourself. Cause that’s helicoptering, and Ma says that while it seems like it's ‘watching over’, it proves to be more toxic to a child’s self-esteem in the long run.”

Hunter’s jaw dropped, and his voice caught in his throat. 

“If this work, art is it, is what you want in life, then go for it. Don’t let anyone else's opinions determine what makes YOU happy! There’s something to live by.” 

Taiga crossed his arms, huffing at the end of his speech. Now he was irritated, great. 

Hunter went silent, looking down at his feet. 

A few moments of silence passed, and Hunter’s shoulders began to shake. 

Taiga heard a sniffle, and when he turned his head, Hunter flew into his side, wrapping his arms around him. 

“AH! H-HEY! What are you-”

“Th-Thank you! That’s the best advice I’ve ever gotten!”

Taiga pursed his lips, a blush crawling over his cheeks. He awkwardly reached down and patted Hunter’s head as the boy softly cried into his side. 

Taiga let his arms fall to his side, staring down at the blonde, “What’s with you people and hugging?”

Hunter chuckled against Taiga’s chest, only tightening his grip around the scout. 

“Boys! Sorry for the wait, Yoshi needed something rea-”

The door of the room swung open as Yuri waltzed in carrying a basket full of art supplies. When she opened her eyes to address them, she stopped in her tracks, voice catching in her throat at the sight before her. 

_ ‘Shit’ _ ,” Taiga thought, looking down at Hunter. 

He sighed, furrowing his eyebrows in determination. 

He cracked his neck and suddenly seized Hunter around the waist, lifting him off the ground and slinging him over his shoulder. 

“AAH!! T-TAIGA!?” 

Hunter squealed as Taiga threw him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The red-head marched to Yuri, who had frozen in place and looked on the verge of a full blown panic attack. 

“Thank you Ms. Yuri we’ll be taking those okay thanks bye.”

Taiga plucked the basket and it's contents from Yuri’s hands and whirling around on his heel, breaking into a run. 

“Huh, hold on WAIT-”

Taiga ignored her calls as she came to and made a mad dash to the door, kicking it open in one swift motion. He tore out of the room and outside, racing across the courtyard with Hunter swinging around, clinging to him desperately. 

“T-Taiga, sl-slow down!” 

The scout did the opposite of that, and only sped up. He ran across the grounds and made for the mess hall, glancing over his shoulder to see if she had followed. 

When he saw no one, he switched the basket to his other hand holding Hunter and threw open the mess hall door, diving in for cover. 

Once inside, he slammed it closed and slumped down to the ground, hiding under the wooden cover. Hunter slid off his back, rolling over the floor, holding his stomach. 

“Ouchie…”

Taiga huffed, placing a hand on his chest, “I think we got away… you good?”

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine…”

“Do I even wanna know?”

Taiga and Hunter looked up to see Hiro standing a few metres from them, holding a bag of fruits. He was staring at them with wide eyes, lips pursed in concern. 

“Uhhh…”

Hunter rolled over to face him, “Ms. Yuri.”

“Oh.”

The concern disappeared almost instantly. Hiro walked over and put down the bag, helping Hunter climb to his feet. 

Taiga remained on the ground, catching his breath after the sudden run. Until a hand appeared in his vision. 

He looked up to see Hiro holding out his hand, face nervous, but still offering. 

Taiga looked at him with a hint of surprise, but he quickly buried it down and silently took Hiro’s hand, allowing the scout to help him to his feet. 

“There we go! Now, what on earth were you two doing with Ms. Yuri that would get her riled to the point you had to run a marathon?” He asked, walking over to the table to pick up his bag. 

Hunter rubbed the back of his neck, “It might have been my fault. I was feeling a bit down and Taiga gave me some really good advice. I hugged him and she saw.”

Hiro’s eyes wide, “You hugged Taiga!? And he didn’t… punch you?”

“I’m  _ right here! _ ”

Hunter snorted at Taiga’s offended squawk, shaking his head, “Hehehe, no. Taiga may seem rough around the edges, but he actually gives some good life advice, and he’s a good listener!”

Hiro cocked a brow, “Coulda fooled me~”

“It’s YOU I’m gonna punch!” Taiga snapped, shaking his fist for emphasis.

Hunter held up his hands, getting in-between them, “Okay, okay! Let’s not start a fight in the mess hall, remember what Keitaro asked us to do?” 

The both looked down at the floor, shuffling their feet. 

Hunter nodded, turning to Hiro, “So, Hiro! What are you making for Keitaro?”

The boy smiled, lifting up his bag of fruit, “I thought about it for a while, and decided to go with my mom’s fruit cobbler!”

Taiga rose a brow, “Cobbler? What’s that?”

Hiro pursed his lips, “Umm, it’s kinda like a pie. What makes it different from pie is that the top crust isn’t smooth but coarse and crumbly, like cobblestone! And unlike pie which can have many different fillings, cobbler’s are almost exclusively desert related!”

Hunter smiled, “That sounds delicious, Hiro!”

Hiro smiled, rubbing the back of his neck, “Hehe, thanks Hunter! So, what are  _ you  _ guys doing here, other than hiding from Ms. Yuri?”

Taiga sighed, “That’s it, we’re hiding from the crazy lady. I decided here cause she might think we’d book it for the cabin, so it might be in our best interest to stay here for a while.” 

Hiro chuckled, “That’s hilarious. If you want, you two can do your things in the kitchen with me! It’d be nice to have some company while I cook.”

Hunter nodded excitedly, “That sounds lovely, Hiro! I’ve never actually  _ seen _ you cook before!” 

The orangette smiled, “Great! Let’s go then!”

Waving them back, Hiro turned around and made his way to the kitchen with Hunter and Taiga in tow. 

The two followed him silently, moving through the mess hall towards the kitchen. Taiga kept looking over his shoulder, making sure Yuri wouldn’t barge in as they disappeared. 

Once in the kitchen, Hiro placed the bag of fruits on the kitchen island. Hunter pulled up a chair to the island, sitting down and placing his sketchbook on the counter. He opened the book, turning to a blank page. 

Hiro immediately set to work, preparing the batter for his cobbler. 

Taiga looked down at the basket, pulling out the art supplies and setting them across the island, giving both himself and Hunter access to them. 

“So, what are you gonna draw?” Taiga asked, pulling out various different ribbons. 

Hunter blushed, looking down at the paper, “I told Keitaro on Nature Day that I’d do a self-portrait of him, and I haven’t done it yet. So, I figured it would be nice to gift him the drawing… I just hope he likes it.”

Taiga snorted, “You could draw a stick figure with a band-aid on it and he’d probably cry.”

Hiro sniggered, “You know, I’d say something against that obvious jab at my best friend… but… I’ve got nothing. Cause… you’re probably right.”

Taiga smirked. 

“Oh, goodness! I forgot something back in the cabin. I’ll be right back!”

With his sudden announcement, Hunter leapt from his temporary seat and raced out of the kitchen before Taiga or Hiro could ask what he had forgotten. With the click of the kitchen door closing, Taiga and Hiro were left alone. 

Taiga looked down at his lap, feeling an awkward air weigh down on his shoulders. Hiro was focusing on the prep, unsure of how to start a conversation with the other scout. 

Silence. 

Taiga cleared his throat, casting a chance. 

“Sooo… how do you make a… what’s it called again, clobber?”

“Cobbler.”

“Y-Yeah, that… what do you do to make one?”

Hiro sighed, “Well, prepping a cobbler is pretty simple. All I need to do is make the batter, lay it down in the pan, fill it fruit, sprinkle over some sugar, then bake it for about an hour.”

“And hour?”

“Yep, that's the long part. Think Yoshi can keep Keitaro occupied long enough?”

Taiga nodded, “Despite our freight, Yuri knows now, so she’ll probably keep Keitaro at bay until we’re ready.” 

Hiro sighed with relief, “Well, that’s good.”

Taiga stared at the basket, humming in thought. He didn’t have a lot of options to make this thing look any better. He could wrap it in ribbons, but just that alone would be plain and boring. 

He groaned, letting his head slam against the kitchen island. 

“The basket defeating you?” Hiro asked, raising a sly brow.

Taiga huffed, “It’s not that. I just don’t have a lot of materials to work with. I have ribbons, stickers, and fucking markers. Pretty limited options…”

Hiro hummed, “Well, I’m not very ‘artsy’, so I don’t have any suggestions. Wanna help me prep the fruits?”

Taiga raised his head in surprise, “Really?”

Hiro nodded, cracking a smile, “I don’t know, maybe working with the fruits will give you some inspiration.”

Taiga pursed his lips, looking down at the fruit with curiosity. 

He gently pushed the basket away, “Sure… What do you need me to do?” 

Hiro grinned, handing him an apple and a peeler, “I just need you to peel the skin off the fruits, mainly the apples and peaches. I’ll set up the batter while you’re at it.”

Taiga nodded, taking the apple in one hand and the peeler in the other. He settled the fruit firmly in his grip and began whittling away at the skin. 

Hiro began mixing the ingredients needed for the batter, letting out a small yawn. 

“I’ll be honest Taiga, I wasn’t expecting you of all people to suggest a group activity for us to do.”

The redhead looked up from the apple, looking at Hiro skeptically. He wasn’t sure how to respond to the comment. He looked back down, electing not to say anything. 

“When Keitaro first came up with the idea of having you bunk with us, I’ll be honest, I was really nervous about the whole thing. I was afraid that with you under the same roof as us, you’d only try to hurt Keitaro more. But, then a few days passed, and you seem almost… calm now. You haven’t snapped at anyone, you offered to hang out with Keitaro yesterday, and you even had this idea for us to do. You… surprised me…”

Taiga looked up from the apple, his eyes wide with surprise. Hiro was pouring the batter into the pan, his gaze on the task at hand. 

“I’m still a little nervous, I’ll be honest. I’m mostly worried for Keitaro. But, he seems to trust you, and even like you. So, I know if I get too defensive about it, he’ll get upset. So, for Keitaro’s sake, I’m willing to try, like he asked me to. Just… don’t hurt him… he means a lot to me…” Hiro whispered, looking up at Taiga with nervous eyes. 

Taiga slowly lowered the fruit down, feeling his heart begin to ram against his chest. The look Hiro gave him was one of worry, but hopeful as well. 

The crimson-eyed scout put the fruit down, turning to face Hiro completely. The other stepped back a bit, and flinched when Taiga held out his hand. 

He nodded, “I’ll do my best.” 

Hiro gaped, his jaw dropping. It hung open for a few moments, as if he was trying to find something to say in return. 

But he said nothing. 

His jaw snapped shut, and he stared at Taiga's hand silently. 

Then… He smiled. 

Hiro reached out and took Taiga's hand firmly, flashing a cheeky grin. 

"Imma hold you to it then!"

Taiga smirked, shaking Hiro's hand. 

Then, his eyes lit up. 

“Oh! I got an idea for Keitaro’s basket!” 

He let go of Hiro’s hand and rushed back over to his spot on the counter, plowing through his supplies almost excitedly. Hiro rose a brow, watching as Taiga pulled out a bunch of ribbons, scattering them all over his work place. 

The amber-eyed scout shook his head, turning himself back to the fruit in front of him. 

“So, how are you gonna decorate it?” He asked, casting some of the fruits into the pan, now lined with batter. 

“Frogs and fuckin’ rainbows.” 

Hiro snorted, biting his lip to stifle his laughter. Taiga cut multiple ribbons to size, wrapping them around the handle as Hiro descended into rough chuckles to his left. 

Suddenly, Hunter skipped back in, holding a couple of erasers. 

“Hey guys, just went to get… um…” His gaze fell onto Hiro, who was now doubled over on the floor, roaring with laughter, “...Did I miss something?” 

Taiga shook his head, “Nothing important. Just figured out how I’m gonna decorate this basket. Lower half is gonna be decorated with frog related things. And the handle’s gonna have rainbow ribbons.”

Hunter chuckled, “That sounds like something Keitaro would like~”

“Imma fucking genuis.” 

Hiro only snorted louder.

* * *

Half an hour passed, and Taiga had left the kitchen with the now fully decorated basket. 

The bottom half of the basket was decked out with frog stickers, some small doodles Hunter made, and other rain-related stickers and drawings. The handle had six, colorful ribbons wrapped around it, making the whole basket appear like a pond with frogs, reflecting a colorful rainbow. 

Taiga smirked, pride swelling in his chest as he held up his project to see. 

Now, he was off to the woods to search for Yoichi and Natsumi; Yoichi specifically. He said that while he couldn’t make much, he had a pet that could take the basket to Keitaro. Taiga knew Yoichi had a pet, but never paid much mind to her the previous year, and he failed to hear what kind of animal it was. 

He also wanted to check and make sure that Natsumi was doing alright as well. He said he’d be catching a beetle for Keitaro, something he promised he’d do earlier in the term. 

It was an odd choice, but he was pretty sure Keitaro would appreciate a small pet to take care of. 

Taiga put the basket at his side and moved through the trees, stepping over rocks and bushes as he did. He kept his ears perked for any noise, hoping to to hear the wild scout before he saw him. With Yoichi wild tendencies, he was afraid of getting jumped from within the thicket. 

Moving off the path, Taiga let out a huff, sticking his free hand into his pocket. 

“Where did he run off to? Of course when I  _ need _ to find him, he fuckin’ vanishes,” Taiga grumbled under his breath, kicking the dirt irratablly. 

The trees got thicker and thicker as he went along, hiding him from the bright light of the sun. He breathed a sigh when the blinding sunlight was cast away from his eyes, allowing him a moment to let his eyes adjust. 

He glanced through the trees, hoping to catch a glimpse of the violette. No such luck. 

“Ugh… this better not take me all day. If we fuck up this activity because I couldn’t find him I’m gonna-“

_ Snap  _

Taiga froze. Every hair stood on end as he heard a definitive  _ crack  _ nearby. He dropped the basket, and his survival instincts kicked in full force. 

“Wh-Who’s there!?” He snapped, taking a few steps backwards in fright. He clenched his fists, baring his teeth like a wild animal trying to intimidate it's foe. Only, he couldn’t see what exactly he was fighting.

Another snap. 

Taiga whirled on his heel, turning behind him to see-

_ “Grrrrrrr…” _

The blood drained from Taiga’s face in an instant. Standing before him was a fully grown husky, flashing it's fangs in an angry snarl. It’s ears were drawn back, and it's back was arched, bringing the dog to full height. 

His knees buckled, and he fell back onto his rear, his entire frame shaking in fear. 

_ No sudden movements, Taiga! Stay still, and it won’t eat you!!! _

Taiga tried to move back slowly, but his trembling arm missed the clearing and landed firmly on a nearby stick, snapping it. 

The dog’s ears pulled forward, and it lowered it’s stance. 

Taiga opened his mouth to scream in fear-

_ “YUKI! HEEL!” _

Relief washed over Taiga when he heard Yoichi’s voice belt out a stern command nearby. 

Yuki suddenly relaxed, her posture going from menacing to calm in an instant. Her tongue lodged out of her mouth, and she tore forward through the grass, leaping over Taiga swiftly. 

The redhead took the opportunity to jump from the ground and race up a nearby tree, his heart hammering in his ears. 

Down below, Yoichi had emerged from his hiding spot in the trees, happily petting Yuki behind the ears. 

“Yuki, you’re gonna give someone a heart attack doin’ all that growling. Well… looks like you already did~”

Yoichi looked up at the tree branch Taiga had latched himself onto, cocking a brow with amusement. 

“Enjoying the view there?”

Taiga sucked in a shaky breath, “Wh-Wh-What the hell, Yoichi!!? You’re d-dog almost a-a-ate me!!” He tightened his grip on the branch for emphasis, staring down at the large scout lividly. 

But Yoichi only chuckled, “Yuki was not gonna  _ eat _ you! Stop being a drama queen.”

_ “I COULDA DIED!” _

Yoichi shook his head, laughing loudly. Yuki jumped and bounced around him, wagging her tail to match her masters enthusiasm. 

The violette sniggered, glaring up at him mischievously. 

“Rough n’ tough Taiga, scared of  _ puppies~ _ ”

“Not puppies! DOGS! Full grown ones! Like that one! H-How is it even listening to you?!” Taiga shot back, tightening his grip on his branch. 

Yoichi snorted, “Cuz she’s  _ my _ dog. You said as much earlier. I’m training her right now to take that basket of yours to Keitaro for this dumb badge thing, but without the actual basket, she’s having a tough time wrappin’ her head around it, huh? Aren’t ya, Yuki~?” 

The huskey barked, jumping up on Yoichi, her fore paws on his chest. While Yoichi laughed joyfully at the display of affection, Taiga only curled around his branch even more. 

Yoichi looked up at Taiga, smirking, “Get out of the tree, Taiga. Don’t you have stuff to do?”

“I’m not budging till you and your pet are out of sight.”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Oh god forbid, get down ya big baby!”

“ _ NO. _ ”

“Fine, I’ll come  _ get _ ya then!”

Yoichi patted Yuki’s head and cracked his knuckles, grabbing the tree’s trunk firmly. 

“St-Stay away, I mean it-“

“Oh shut up.”

Yoichi climbed the tree effortlessly and crawled to Taiga’s height. He then seized the trembling scout by the back of his shirt, ripping him off the branch in one swift movement. 

“WHAT THE FU- PUT ME DOWN!!!”

“Hey Yuki, wanna meet your new friend~?” 

The husky panted happily, bouncing up and down in excitement as Yoichi climbed down the tree with Taiga under his arm. 

“W-Wait! Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait-“ Taiga shouted, flailing about from under Yoichi’s arm. When they hit the ground, Yuki jumped up and shoved her nose into Taiga’s face, licking his cheeks. 

“H-Hey! Ahaha, st-stop!” Taiga squirmed in Yoichi’s grasp, trying to wrestle his way to freedom as Yuki assaulted his face. 

But Yoichi only sniggered, “Awww, look at that. She likes you. Scared of her now, tough guy?”

A dark blush raced over Taiga’s cheeks. Yuki stepped back and stared up at Taiga happily, her tail wagging back and forth furiously. The reason he was nervous around dogs was only because of how strong they could be. He’d seen videos and presentations of them when trained to fight, and it was always rather nerve racking for him to watch. 

Before he could respond, Yoichi uncurled his arm and dropped Taiga, the scout landing on the ground with a sudden huff. 

“OW! W-Watch it!” He snapped, climbing back up to his feet with shaky knees. 

Yoichi only snorted, “Hey, I don’t know why you’re nervous, but Yuki here won’t attack ya unless I ask her too. And the only reason she was growly earlier was because you scared her with all that yelling you’ve been doing. She is a bit territorial, ‘specially after last year.”

Taiga rose a brow, “Last year? I knew you had a pet, but I never actually got the chance to see her. Why is she out here?”

Yoichi snarled, his hands tightening into fists at the question, “Cuz she bit someone last year… out of self defense…”

Yuki’s tail stopped shaking. She walked over to Yoichi, placing her head underneath his hand, a small whimper escaping her throat. Yoichi smiled softly, scratching her behind the ears. 

Taiga looked down at his feet. 

“...Do you know who?”

Yoichi perked, “Who? Who, what?”

“Attacked Yuki. If she bit someone out of self defense, someone must have hit her first. Do you know who?” Taiga asked again, adding more for clarity. 

Yoichi shook his head, “No, I don’t. All Yoshinori was willing to tell me before kicking Yuki out of the camp was that it was a group of six, and one of them was involved directly with the sportsfest disaster last year…”

Taiga felt his throat tighten. A group of six involved in the incident. He knew exactly who was responsible. 

He heaved a sigh, “...Manuel.”

The violette stopped, “Who?”

“Manuel. He was on the team opposite of us during the sportsfest last year. He was the one that threatened us… then punched me. He started that fight. And he always had five friends with him at all times. So, if someone involved in the sportsfest did it, then it was probably his friends,” Taiga explained, images of the fight flashing through his mind. 

Especially of what happened to Manuel in question. 

“Never heard of him. He stayed at the camp after that shitshow?” Yoichi asked, turning to face Taiga completely. 

But Taiga shook his head, “No, he left right after the incident. And not because he wanted to, but because he had to. Because of… well…”

His eyes cast down to his feet. 

Silence hung in the air. 

“...Me.”

Yoichi narrowed his eyes, “You?”

He nodded, “Yeah. He was the one who threatened me if I didn’t apologize for the incident. But, I was really confused, and then he hit me. Suddenly, he and I were locked together, neck and neck. Fighting broke out all around us, but between him and I, he started snapping threats at not just me, but my friends as well. He said he’d hurt Eduard, Lee, Natsumi, you, Ki- others, until I fessed up.”

Yoichi said nothing. 

“And after hearing that I just… lost it. I ended up seriously hurting him. His rib cage was… broken, and near punctured his lung. I didn’t mean for it to happen, but hearing him threaten my friends with so much violence just made me so… angry. Especially since he wanted me to apologize for something I…”

He trailed off, going silent. 

Yoichi stared at Taiga with uncertainty. He said  _ his _ name in that list. Did Taiga really hurt that other scout in protectiveness towards… him?

“So, I guess after he left, his friends went after Yuki, to get back at you. Since you were one of the people on my team. So… in a way… what happened to her was my fault. I don’t really get along with dogs, but I’d never hurt one.”

Taiga looked down at his feet, heaving a sigh. 

Yoichi looked down at Yuki, who let out a small yip. He gave her another pat on the head before rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Well, it ain’t your fault that those assholes attacked Yuki. Did you tell them to do it?”

“What? No!”

“Then don’t blame yourself. Didn’t you yell at Keitaro like, two days ago for doing this exact thing?”

Taiga opened his mouth to shoot back, but nothing came to mind. 

Yoichi smirked, “Look, I don’t know the details about the whole fiasco last year, and frankly I couldn’t give a shit. But you didn’t hurt Yuki yourself, so I don’t hold you to what happened. And besides, she seems to like you, despite what you say about yourself. So take your own advice for once.”

Taiga’s mouth snapped shut. 

He looked back down at Yuki, who turned up and wagged her tail. 

Taiga couldn’t help but crack a smile, reaching out a shaking hand to pet her head. She leaned in and butted the top of her head against his hand, patting happily at the display. 

Yoichi smirked, “See that? She likes ya, so stop complaining!” 

Taiga sighed, lifting up his basket to see if it was still intact after his little incursion up the tree. 

The other scout finally noticed said basket, and looked down at it with a bemused stare, “So, that’s Keitaro’s gift from you?”

Taiga nodded, “Yeah, I tried to make it look like a rainbow reflecting over a pond full of frogs… or something like that.” 

Yoichi snorted, “That is the cheesiest thing I’ve ever heard of!”

Taiga smirked, “And that’s why it's perfect~”

The crimson-eyed scout held it out to him, “And you said Yuki was having trouble training without the actual thing? I left a space empty on the top of the handle so that she can hold it without damaging the ribbons.”

Yoichi took the basket from Taiga, looking back down at Yuki, “Ready to try this again, girl?”

He received a positive bark from Yuki. 

“I think we’ll be able to nail this by the time Frogboy’s done with… whatever it is he’s doing with Sheriff Brokeback,” Yoichi stated, holding up the basket with confidence. Taiga nodded, “Good, just don’t ruin it while you practice, I don’t wanna have to redo it.”

“Quit gettin’ your panties in a knot, we won’t break it. You’re starting to sound like Mr. Perfect.”

Taiga’s eyes widened, “Oh, speaking of which, do you know where Natsumi is? I want to check and see how he’s doing on his task.”

The violette gestured behind him with a thumb, “Somewhere back there, hunting for his beetle.”

Taiga nodded, “Thanks.”

He gave Yuki one last nervous pat on the head, still wry of the large dog. He walked past Yoichi, resuming his walk through the wood. 

“Oi, Dynamite.”

Taiga stopped, looking over his shoulder. 

“...Don’t screw this up.”

He smirked, closing his eyes, “I don’t intend to. Not this time.”

Yoichi nodded, giving a small whistle for Yuki to follow him. Without another word, the two disappeared behind the trees. 

Taiga rubbed the back of his neck, letting a short sigh of relief. 

He turned back around, returning to his walk. 

As he moved through the trees once more, he narrowed his eyes when he realized something. 

“...Dynamite?”

* * *

It was another ten minutes before Taiga stopped his walk through the woods, his legs beginning to ache. He began wishing he asked Yoichi for specific directions, maybe a landmark or something. 

He scratched the back of his head, heaving a sigh. 

“Fuck, my legs hurt. How does Natsumi walk this much doing chores all day?”

He found a nearby tree stump and plopped himself down, sighing happily when the weight was taken off his legs. He placed his hands behind him, leaning back to take in a few breaths of the fresh air. 

He closed his eyes, listening to the sounds of the forest echoing around him. 

A soft smile crawling along his face. 

“Hmmm… I have to admit; while I hate looking around for people, I  _ do _ appreciate the calm that it brings.”

A few moments of silence passed. 

As Taiga let himself fall into comfort, he failed to hear the buzzing sound above him. It landed on a nearby tree and crawled along the branches, making little tapping noises as it moved across the leaves. It moved off the leaf and back onto the branch, but missed a step and lost its grip, falling off the branch and right onto the scout’s head. 

Taiga opened his eyes and stared forward. 

_ “What the fuck is on my head.” _

Taiga ever so slowly lifted his arm to take the offending creature off before- 

_ “Taiga! Stay still!” _

A hiss from the bushes stopped him. Taiga froze completely still at the quiet, but stern command from Natsumi, whom he couldn’t see. But he sounded serious, and it made Taiga’s heart pound in fear for what on earth was crawling through his hair. 

He heard Natsumi slowly sneak up behind him, the grass crunching underneath his shoes. After a few moments of deafening silence, Taiga winced when he felt Natsumi’s hands in his hair, picking up whatever was on his head and removing it. 

“ _ Aaaaand _ … gotcha’!”

The creature was swiftly scooped out of Taiga’s locks, Natasumi announcing his capture proudly. 

Taiga let out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding, turning around to see what Natsumi had pried off his head. 

“I’ve been chasing this little guy all day! He’s one of the biggest beetles I’ve seen, so I knew he’d be perfect for Keitaro! Good thing he got stuck in your hair, Taiga~” Natsumi cooed, placing the bug inside a small container with a green lid, smiling brightly. 

“He was stuck in my hair?” Taiga asked, receiving a confirming nod. 

“Yep. He was shaking his leg around something fierce, meaning he probably got tangled up. Mostly likely from the hooks on his feet that help him cling to the sides of trees,” Natsumi explained, pointing through the box at said feet. 

Taiga peered in, looking as the beetle crawled through the small box, fluttering the exoskeleton over it’s wings. 

“Well, at least you have it now.” Taiga straightened up, watching as Natsumi smiled at his catch proudly. 

Natsumi nodded, tucking the small cage under his arm. He then looked up at Taiga with a curious brow raised, “Yeah. But, moving aside from that; can I ask why you’re out here? I thought you were making the basket for our activity?”

Taiga nodded in agreement, “I am. And I did. I actually finished it a little over an hour ago. Apparently Yoichi was having some trouble teaching Yuki the trick he wants to do without the actual thing, so I finished it up quickly and handed it off to him. Hopefully the basket will still be intact by the time we’re all finished.”

Natsumi chuckled, “Hehe, yeah. Yoichi may be rough, but he knows this means a lot to us, and to Keitaro, so I’m sure he’ll be gentle with it. He and Yuki both. But if you’re done with your activity, why are you out here in the woods, besides giving the basket to Yoichi?”

Taiga snorted, rubbing the back of his head, “I’ve been checking on everyone’s progress with their contributions. Hunter’s started his drawing and should be done, Hiro’s cobbler is in the oven, Yoichi’s got the basket now and should be on course for getting Yuki ready, and I wanted to see how you were doing with your bug hunt. But it looks like I ended up helping, albeit unintentionally.” 

Natsumi smiled, “Aww, that’s actually really nice of you, Taiga!”

The redhead blushed, looking away embarrassingly, “H-Hey! I just wanted to make sure you guys weren’t slacking off or anything!”

The bluenette sniggered, “Sure, Taiga~”

He only snorted in response. 

“Hehehe, but in all seriousness, Taiga; I’m really impressed.”

He rose a brow, “Impressed? Why?”

Natsumi shuffled his feet, looking down at the ground, “With you. You came up with this really great idea for our badge today, and not only that, but it’s for Keitaro of all people. When this term started out, and you began showing hostility towards him, I was really worried that we’d repeat what happened last year. But ever since Keitaro got you to bunk with us, you’ve really loosened up. You’re starting to act like… you’re old self again.”

Taiga looked up in shock. 

“I’ll be honest, I was really nervous about you bunking with us. I was afraid that it would cause problems for Keitaro and the rest of us, but… it’s seemed to be the opposite. I’m really glad that being us is working out for you, at least from what I’ve seen. I also wanted to say that… I’m sorry that I doubted you in the first place. I know how hard you tried last year to fix everything, and I should’ve kept that in mind.”

Natsumi gave him a small bow, the feeling of guilt rising in his chest. 

Taiga took a shocked step back, unsure of how to process the sudden show of emotion. 

“H-Hey, you don’t have to apologize to me for anything! I… I was the one being… well… to put it frankly…”

He looked away with a flush. 

“A dickhead.”

Natsumi snorted, rising back up. 

“B-But, anyway! Bunking with you guys hasn’t been… well… the  _ worst _ thing that’s happened to me. But… I really do want to show others that I’m not what they made me out to be last year!” He proclaimed, puffing his chest out with pride. 

Natsumi smiled, “Well, I’m glad to hear it! And I think this activity is an excellent way to start!” 

Taiga sighed, “Well… I guess…”

The taller scout gave Taiga a pat on the back, smiling brightly, “There, there! No need to get embarrassed. You should be proud! Now, I’m all done here, so why don’t we head back and find Yoichi? Yuki’s really smart, and I know she’ll have the trick down soon. Besides, I wanna see the basket you made! How did you decorate it?”

Taiga smirked, spinning on his heels, “With frogs and rainbows.”

Natsumi smiled, “That sounds right up Keitaro’s alley! I’m sure he’ll love it!” 

Taiga snickered, “Oh yeah. I thought of the cheesiest thing I could make, and went from there.”

* * *

Thirty minutes had passed. Most of the campers had finished their activities and presented their final work to one of the scoutmasters, earning a badge for themselves. 

Outside the mess hall, behind the building, Taiga had led Natsumi, and later Yoichi, back to the camp. Yuki was waiting nearby, unable to step out with the threat of being seen. 

Hiro and Hunter had left the kitchen as well. Hiro held his finished creation in a small pan covered by a thin towel, and Hunter gently placed his portrait of Keitaro into a small, decorative folder he’d gotten from Yuri. 

Taiga looked around, the basket back in his possession. He held it up and stared inside, looking at everything they’d need to cram inside. 

“I… kinda wish we had a bigger basket.”

Natsumi sighed, “Unfortunately, we don’t do much with baskets, so that’s all we have on hand. It should be able to fit Hiro’s treat for certain!”

Hiro nodded, but he looked down at it with concern, “I’d say let’s put mine on the bottom, but I’m afraid of it getting smushed under the little box with the beetle. And, I’m not sure putting a box with a bug in it on top of food is all that sanitary.”

Hunter nodded in agreement, “Y-Yeah… we could try putting my drawing in-between them. Or put the beetle on the bottom of the basket?”

From against the wall, Yoichi shook his head, “No can do. If we put that food at the top, Yuki might give in and try to eat it. It’d be better to put it on the bottom. How durable is that… clobber?”

“Cobbler.”

“Whatever, how sturdy is it?”

Hiro hummed, lifting the towel to observe it, “As long as we get it delivered quickly, it should hold up for maybe.. twenty minutes?” 

Taiga frowned, rubbing his chin in thought, “Will we be able to execute this in that timeframe?” 

Yoichi rose a brow, “You ask that like it's gonna be hard to do.”

Taiga turned around to face him, “Well, we have to go get Keitaro, make sure none of the scoutmasters follow him, lead him into the woods, and have Yuki deliver the basket while not being seen. I’m not sure what Yoshi wanted him for, but we’ll have to convince him to stay back, otherwise we might get in trouble for using Yuki in the activity…”

Silence. 

“Okay, nevermind.” Yoichi crossed his arms with a huff, running a hand through his hair in irritation. 

The five sat in silence for a few moments, mulling over how they would go about doing this. 

Taiga hummed in thought, turning to Natsumi, “Hey, you think you can convince Yoshi to let Keitaro leave? You seem to know him best, he might listen to you and not ask too many questions.”

The scout in question rubbed the back of his head, “I can try. I should be able to make a good enough excuse to brush him off.”

Taiga smirked, “Great. So we’ll have you lead Keitaro to us then. Leave the beetle with us, and we’ll go get Yuki set up. You’ll find us near the first clearing on the path, think you can do that?”

Natsumi saluted proudly, “Of course!”

He handed the box to Taiga, who turned on his heel to face Hiro, “Alright, let’s do this thing!”

With his final word, Natsumi rushed off to the scoutmaster’s cabin. The rest of them piled their contributions into the basket and moved out of sight and into the woods, trekking to their hiding spot. 

Yoichi let out a whistle, calling Yuki to him. They got to the small clearing and moved to the bushes, Yoichi stayed out to give Yuki her instructions. 

“Hey girl, ready to give Keitaro his present?” He asked, holding the basket up in his hand. The excited husky gave a bark in confirmation, wagging her tail excitedly. 

Yoichi smirked, holding it out and instructing Yuki to take the basket’s handle. 

“Alrighty, I’ll give you a little whistle when it’s time for you to give him the basket. Now, stay!” Yoichi gave her one last pat on the head, then stood up and moved into the bushes. He sat down next to Hunter, who sat and fidgeted with his hands. 

_ “Do you think Keitaro will like it?” _ Hunter whispered, the worry etched into his brows. 

Hiro smiled from across their hiding spot, reaching out to give Hunter’s hand a few pats,  _ “Don’t worry, Hunter! If I know Keitaro, he’s gonna LOVE it!” _

Hunter smiled weakly, squeezing Hiro’s hand for comfort. 

“Natsumi, why are you leading me into the woods?”

The group froze, hearing Keitaro’s voice in the distance. 

“I told you, we have a surprise for you!” Natsumi responded excitedly, giving Keitaro a reassuring smile. 

Keitaro furrowed his brows, grabbing the sleeve of Natsumi’s uniform nervously, “But why do you have to show me out here? Isn’t this too far out for us? I don’t you guys getting in trouble for taking me out here…”

Natsumi shook his head, “Nonsense! I’m sure the scoutmasters will understand! Because…”

He stopped, pointing out into the clearing. 

Keitaro skidded to a stop, following Natsumi’s finger. 

He gasped.

“Is that… Yuki?” He asked, seeing the dog sitting in the clearing, wagging her tail at the mention of her name. 

From behind the tree, Yoichi smiled. He stuck his fingers in-between his lips, and whistled. 

Yuki jumped up, trotting over to Keitaro with the basket held high. She stopped right in front of him, jumping up and placing her paws on his chest. 

“Oh goodness! Hi, Yuki! Whatcha’ got there?” He asked, scratching her behind the ears happily. 

Natsumi smiled, “Your present!”

“Wh-What? My… present?”

Keitaro looked down at the basket once more, his eyes narrowing with confusion. 

“Wha-“

“SURPRISE!!!”

The brunette jumped in fright at the sound of Hunter and Hiro shouting. The two had leapt from the bushes and raced over, suddenly hugging the confused scout. 

“You asked us to do an activity together, right?” Hiro asked, burying his face into Keitaro’s neck. 

Before he could answer, Hunter continued, “So, we decided that the subject for our activity would be  _ you _ !”

Keitaro gapped, unable to summon his voice. He looked back down at the basket, this time, finally taking it from Yuki. The pup jumped down, running in circles happily at her completed task. 

“Hehe, good job Yuki!” Yoichi slowly emerged from the hiding spot, beckoning Yuki over so that he could love and praise her. 

Taiga remained hidden. His heart had seized up on him, and his voice caught in his throat. Nervousness raced through every nerve in his body as he peered around the bush, observing Keitaro as he stared at the basket with wonder. 

Why was he suddenly so nervous? This was  _ his _ idea! He should be out there presenting it, but instead, his knees had buckled on him, and he was unable to move. The only thing he could do was sit and watch as Keitaro unfurled their gift. 

“Well, go ahead and see what’s inside!” Hiro chirped, grabbing Keitaro’s arm and shaking it. 

The green-eyed scout giggled, reaching up and patting Hiro’s head, “Alright, alright! Just stop shaking me so I can look inside.”

He lifted the basket so that he was eye level with it, observing the outside. He sat in silence for a few moments, before gasping. 

“Oh my goodness! It’s like a rainbow over a pond! That’s so cool! Which one of you did this!?” He cried, spinning the basket around and around to see the whole thing. 

Natsumi smiled, “The only one of us not out of hiding yet. And, the one who came up with the idea!” 

Keitaro rose a brow, “Huh? It wasn’t any of you?”

He shook his head, “Nope. It was him!” He pointed over to the bush, and Keitaro’s eyes fell upon it. 

Taiga could just feel his gaze, and finally found the strength he needed to rise himself out of the confines of his hiding place and show himself. 

He smiled weakly, “ _ Ayyy~” _

Keitaro gasped, “This was  _ your _ idea? And YOU made the basket!?” 

Taiga shook his hand, “Eh, you’re half right. It  _ was _ my idea, but I didn’t actually make the basket, just… decorated it, that’s all.”

Keitaro’s jaw dropped. He fumbled, trying to find his words, but a poke from Hiro drew his attention away, “Come on, Keitaro! There’s something at the bottom that’s getting squished.”

“Oh! Okay then… lemme, AAHH!”

Keitaro reached and grabbed the first gift, only to shout in what could only be described a sheer, utter,  _ zeal _ . 

He was holding the little bug cage with the beetle inside, and despite his roar of delight, the insect seemed undisturbed. 

“It’s a rhino beetle! A BIG one!!” He squealed, hopping up and down on his toes. Natsumi smiled. 

“That’s from me! I promised you on our first hike that I’d catch one for you, so I figured this would be the perfect opportunity! He’s one of the biggest beetles I’ve found, so I thought you’d like him!” He explained, clapping his hands together. 

_ “I love him!” _ Keitaro looked borderline ready to cry as he stared lovingly at the bug. 

Natsumi blushed, “Hehe, I’m glad you like him. You wanna name him?”

Keitaro gasped, “HAH! CAN I?!”

He laughed heartily, “Of course! He’s  _ your _ pet!”

Keitaro gazed back down at the beetle, staring at him with wide eyes and a blank expression. A few moments of silence passed as Keitaro fell into deep thought. 

After half a minute, Hunter walked up and gently grabbed onto Keitaro’s arm, “So… what are you gonna name him?”

…

_ “Reginald.” _

“PFFFT!”

Yoichi suddenly wheezed, doubling over as he roared with laughter. Hiro fell back onto the ground, shaking as he laughed hysterically. 

Taiga threw his hand over his mouth, trying to stifle a laugh over the dramatics of the name. 

Natsumi frowned, crossing his arms and turning to Hiro and Yoichi angrily, “Hey! Why are you two laughing at him?”

Hiro held up a hand, trying to climb back to his feet, “Hahaha-I-I’m sorry it's just… pfft, the  _ way _ he said it, hahaha!”

Keitaro smiled, “Don’t worry, Natsumi, it’s alright! But anyway, thank you for the gift! I’ll take really good care of him!” 

He tucked the box to his chest, a warm blush spreading over his cheeks. He looked back down into the basket, smiling brightly. 

“What else did you guys put in here?” He asked, moving Reginald’s box and placing it under his arm. 

“Well, why don’t you go ahead and see?” Hiro mused, nudging Keitaro’s side playfully. 

The brunette reached back in, pulling out the thin folder next. He rose a brow, puffing out his lip curiously as he slowly opened it. Hunter’s face grew red, and he buried himself into Keitaro’s side, trying to hide himself from view. 

Keitaro gently grabbed the piece of paper inside and pulled it out, turning it over to see what was on it. 

“Oh my goodness!” 

Keitaro stared at the paper in wonder. A delicate portrait of himself was drawn with care over the page. It was sketched out in pencil, and almost every detail about his face was depicted in the drawing, even the bandaid he wore on his cheek. 

“Wow! This is amazing! Hunter, did you draw this!?” He cried, turning his head to look down at the hiding scout. 

The blonde nodded slowly against his side, “Y-Yes… I-I promised y-you I’d draw you a s-self portrait… so…”

Keitaro’s smile only widened, and he moved his arm to give him a tight side hug, “Awww! Thank you so much, Hunter! It’s so amazing, I don’t think I’ve ever looked  _ this _ good before!” 

Hunter blushed, fiddling his index fingers together nervously, “W-Well… I-I’m glad you like it…”

Keitaro smiled, holding it up to shine the sun behind it, “It’s great! Can I put it in my journal?”

Hunter looked up in surprise, “R-Really? You think it's worthy of… going in your journal?”

He nodded vigorously, “Of course! And it’s the perfect size too! It’ll fit in my journal like a glove!” He slipped the picture back into the folder and held it in his other hand. 

He peered back into the basket, seeing the small red and white towel. 

“Oh is this every- wait…” He sniffed the bottom of the basket, “Oh my… that smells good!”

Before he could finish his own question, he stopped and slowly took off the towel. With the piece of fabric out of the way, the scent of the cobbler wafted from the basket, making the hairs on Keitaro’s body stand on end. 

“Oh wow! Hiro, is this that cobbler you and your mom made all the time?!” He cried, pulling the basket to his face to smell it closer. 

Hiro nodded with a smile, “You bet! I remembered how much you loved it when Mom and I made this for you, so I figured it would be the perfect gift!”

Keitaro smiled warmly, looking at everything he had been given, “I just… what spurred this on?”

Yoichi grinned, petting Yuki, “Believe it or not, we were on a stump as to what to do for this dumb activity. It was actually Dynamite who thought of this activity. Apparently there’s a badge for giving people gifts.”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “We were surprised when he came up with the idea, but it was something that we could do together, and still be in our own elements. And, I think the activity brought us all closer together, like you asked us too!”

Keitaro looked up at Taiga, feeling his eyes water. 

The scout in question rubbed his arm, shuffling his feet nervously, “I um… just decorated the basket, that’s all. But… I thought this activity might be the best one for us…”

Silence followed. Keitaro stared at him quietly, his heart pounded in his chest. He slowly placed everything back into the basket, and handed it off to Hiro, who furrowed his brows with confusion. 

“Keitaro? Are you okay?” 

He didn’t answer. He took a few steps towards Taiga, tears brimming in his eyes. 

The scout looked up at Keitaro, at first, nervous. 

But then, he knew. 

“No.  _ No, don’t you dare-“ _

“TAIGA!!!”

Before anyone could react, Keitaro shot across the clearing and slammed into the fearful scout, knocking the breath out of him with a powerful hug. Taiga squawked, squirming in Keitaro’s tight grip. 

“H-Hey! Lemme go! What did I say about this hugging shit!?” 

But Keitaro only squeezed him harder, tears leaking from his eyes. 

“Thank you, Taiga! I really,  _ really _ love it! Thank you, boys…”

Keitaro looked over his shoulder, a bright smile caressing his flushed cheeks. 

The other four all smiled, coming up behind him. Taiga eventually subjected himself to the hug, going limp in the brunette’s strong arms. 

The six all sat there in comfortable silence, the only sound being Yuki running around the clearing, chasing bugs. 

Keitaro smiled, burying his head into Taiga’s chest, who looked down at the display nervously. 

Within his mind, Keitaro was jumping for joy. Surrounded by his boys, he glanced back down at the basket. Something they  _ all _ made, for  _ him _ . 

_ Taiga… is this a sign? Are you gonna stay with us?  _

He sighed happily.

Taiga lifted his hand nervously, gently patting Keitaro’s head. While they all were distracted, a soft smile crossed his face. 

_...I guess you’ve rubbed off on me…  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAASGSDFHADGHAFDHADFHADFHADFHADGQ
> 
> I FINALLY MADE IT!!!!
> 
> Holy shit you guys, I can’t even describe what a SHITHOLE December’s been. My Dad left for the states, I got hit by some pretty big bills, work’s been at an all new level of busy, the HOLIDAYS! I’ve just been real down. 
> 
> But, I finally got some vacation time secured, and with this along with a new set up, I got the BIGGEST wave of inspiration. 
> 
> Also, the Scoutmasters DLC Demo played a huge part. Go play it guys I was having a goddamed stroke the whole time it’s fanTASTIC!!!
> 
> But, all troubling life struggles aside, I can finally present with pride, DAY 12!!!! 
> 
> I had a little bit of trouble working out how exactly Taiga would bond with the other boys without Keitaro needing to chaperone them at all points. So, I figured doing an activity FOR him would a great way for them to bond! Taiga meets Yuki, befriends Hunter, gains Hiro’s trust (kinda, he’s still nervous), and even Yoichi and Natsumi are willing to move past the events of last year. 
> 
> And we meet, the true icon of this entire fiction. The only character that matters...
> 
> R e g i n a l d. 
> 
> Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to get attached to the beetle Natsumi would catch Keitaro, but I sure as hell did. Reginald the Beetle will be a reoccurring character, just a heads up, Keitaro ain’t gonna abandon this baby. 
> 
> And with that, I think I can call it day! I will be putting streams on hold for a little while, since I’m still recuperating from 2020. But, I can say proudly that my inspiration and drive hit me like a train, and I’ll be proudly working on Day 13 into the new year and will hopefully have it up by the end of January!
> 
> NEXT TIME:   
> The day that follows their big activity it set to be a tame one. No new activities for them to do, just a day to relax. That is, until Keitaro asks Taiga when his birthday is. Turns out its July 13th. Why is that problem? Because that’s TODAY! The boys decided to try and repay Taiga for his idea and do something for his birthday. How will this turn out? Great, or disastrous?
> 
> STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!!!
> 
> (And yes since Camp Buddy would take place most likely in July, that means Taiga’s 19th birthday would canonically be turning the term, depending on when it starts. Also, why not?)
> 
> Let’s Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~
> 
> AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!


	15. Day 13: A Model Birthday

*BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP*

“Mmmmhh…”

Keitaro groaned in his sleep, throwing his blanket over his head. He tried to tune out the infernal ringing coming from the alarm clock on his nightstand, not wanting to awaken just yet. 

“Keitarooooo… turn if oooooff…”

Taiga reached down from his bunk, knocking on the side of the bedpost to wake Keitaro up. 

Despite his personal desires, Keitaro reluctantly rose from the comforts of his bed, reaching over to blindly slam his hand against the alarm clock, shutting it off and restoring the silence to the cabin. 

He rolled back over, curling into his blanket protectively. 

Across the room, Natsumi slowly rose up from bed, stretching his arms up with a yawn, “Come on guys, alarm clock means wake up!”

Without a hint of tiredness, Natsumi swung his legs over the side of his bed, standing up effortlessly. 

Hiro groaned from his bed, tucking his head under his blanket, “Mmmm… but Natsumi… it’s only seven…” He whined, trying to hide from the tall scout. 

Natsumi smirked, walking over to gently pull the blanket off of Hiro’s face, “Yep, that’s true. But we might have an activity today, and this is when Sir Aiden makes breakfast! Do you wanna have a cold breakfast?” 

Hiro shook his head slowly, curling into his pillow. 

“Then up, up, up!”

He sighed, slowly rising up from the bed as Natsumi moved around the room to wake everyone else up. 

Keitaro let out another yawn, lifting himself up from the bed. He rubbed his eyes groggily, pulling off his blanket. He unfurled his legs and rose up, stretching his back as he went. With a few pops, he let out a long sigh and looked up at the bunk above his own, noticing Taiga still wrapped in his duvet like a burrito. 

He reached up and poked the side of the wrap, hearing Taiga snort. 

“Come on, Taiga. Let’s go get breakfast…” He mumbled, still half asleep himself. 

“Don’t wanna…”

Keitaro chuckled, “Hey, neither do I, but here I am. Now come on, don’t make me drag you out of bed~”

The blanket rolled close to the edge, and he watched Taiga peer from within the wrap, narrowing his eyes, “...You wouldn't.”

He smirked, “You wanna test that theory?” 

Taiga’s eyes narrowed more as the two entered a silent stare down. Keitaro smiled softly, lacing his fingers behind his back, appearing oh-so-innocent. Taiga knew the green-eyed nerd could  _ probably _ pry him from the comforts of his blanket. He was still haunted by the bruise he’d received on his wrist when he tried to, well… he’d been meaning to ask about this supposed “hidden” strength of his. 

Drawing himself from his thoughts, Taiga sighed, kicking his blanket off with a pout, “Fine… I’m up…”

“Yay! Now, lemme feed Reginald and I’ll join you boys in the bath!” Keitaro chirped, turning to the small bug box sitting on his nightstand. He was glad he asked Yoshi if they had beetle food. It turned out that Natsumi had had a few beetle pats in the previous years, so Yoshi had kept some on hand at all times. He hadn’t expected Keitaro to come asking him for some, but happily stocked him up with the stuff nonetheless. 

Keitaro pulled the little cup out from his drawer and peeled off the lid, opening the top of the bin and placing the now open jelly cup into it’s holder. 

Reginald seemed to notice the food immediately, and quickly crawled across his pen and straight to the cup. 

Keitaro smiled, cooing happily as Reginald went to work on downing the cup. He closed the top of the container, straightening back up. Natsumi walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder, smiling at the display. 

“He really loves those fruit cups!” Keitaro chirped, turning back to Natsumi who nodded in agreement. 

“Yep! Most beetles eat leaves or tree sap since there’s an abundance of it. But they really like fruit, so for domestic beetles, they kinda mixed the fruit and sap to make a tasty, healthy food. It’s packed with nutrients as well, so it’ll keep him healthy!” Natsumi explained, holding up his hand as he spoke. 

Yoichi, who had begrudgingly rose from bed after Hiro’s persistence, rolled his eyes, “Why do you have to work in a lecture to  _ everything _ you’re asked?”

Natsumi, seemingly unaffected by the insult, just shrugged, “I like sharing information.”

Yoichi sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. 

From his bunk, Taiga let out a long yawn, and stretched out in his bed, letting his arms hang over the edge of the bed, “I’ll wait till you guys are done to go take my shower.”

Hiro looked up, an amused grin on his face, “Taiga, you know, you don’t have to wait for us. The bathroom  _ is _ big enough to hold all of us.”

Taiga shook his head, crossing his arms with a huff, “Nope, I’m not doin’ that!”

Hiro chuckled from across the room, “Scared of a little man to man bonding time?”

The redhead snorted, “No, I am not.”

“Then why the hesitation?” He reported, leaning forward curiously. 

Hunter had woken up at this point, slowly moving across the room towards the entrance of the bathroom. He looked up at Taiga’s bunk, rubbing his eyes, “Let’s not pressure him guys…”

Yoichi snorted, turning his head up with a grin, “Come on, man! You’ve been bunking with us for four… five, almost a week now? Despite the stick up your butt, you’re one of us now! And that means, shower bonding!”

“I am not  _ shower bonding _ . You make it sound creepy!”

Keitaro looked down at his feet, a dark blush crossing his cheeks. He thought of making a comment, but the secret giddy delight inside of him would probably make him say something he’d regret later. So, he kept his enthusiasm to himself. 

“Come on, Dynamite-“

“NO.”

Hiro and Yoichi exchanged looks of bemusement. They nodded in unison. 

“Alright, you’ve left us no choice!”

“Come on,  _ roomie _ !”

The two suddenly advanced on Taiga’s bunk, making the redhead shuffle back against the wall, “H-Hey! You stay back!”

Yoichi broke into a jog and jumped up against the bunk, latching onto it’s side. He quickly grabbed Taiga by the back of his shirt and dropped down, dragging him across the bed. 

“Don’t fight it, man-“

“UNHAND ME!”

Hiro reached up and grabbed Taiga’s waist, pulling back as well. Taiga latched onto the side of the bed frame, screaming profanities. 

“Come on, Dynamite! You can’t hide from us forever!”

“You’re one of us now~” 

Taiga shrieked, “I will not! Get your hands off me- GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME YOU WHORES!  _ YOU HEATHENS!!!” _

With his final cry of defiance, Hiro and Yoichi pulled one last time and ripped him from the bed frame. Yoichi quickly slung him over his shoulder, patting his leg. 

“There we go! Now, we’re off!” 

The two spun on their heels and marched to the bathroom, Taiga screaming bloody murder as he dangled from Yoichi’s tight grip. 

Natsumi watched as he was taken away, Hunter giggling off to the side. 

“Well that was certainly a… thing.”

Keitaro sighed, “Well, we should probably go too. Make sure it doesn’t get…  _ too _ violent in there.”

The three chuckled, moving through the cabin and into the bathroom. Letting Hunter and Natsumi move in first, Keitaro closed the door behind them, yawning as he did so. 

When he turned to the lockers, he snorted when he saw Yoichi and Hiro chasing Taiga, the three running in circles around the benches. It didn’t help that Hiro and Yoichi were already half-naked, only running their underwear. 

“Come on Taiga-“

“NO!”

“You’ve changed in front of us before! You even took that bath with Keitaro your first day here!” Hiro shouted, slamming a foot on the bench and pointing at the redhead harshly. Taiga huffed, his back against the lockers. 

“That was just one person! Besides, you people treat this whole bath thing like it’s some kinda ritual!” Taiga snapped back, holding up his arms when Yoichi got near him. 

“Come on, Dynamite. We’re not gonna eat ya!”

“I find that hard to believe!” Taiga shouted, scooting away from Yoichi as the large scout creeped towards him. He glanced left and right, trying to find some kind of opening to slip away. He then saw the other three members of the cabin near the door. 

His eyes darted to Yoichi, and he went silent. The two were locked in a stare down, silently waiting for the other to make their move. 

Taiga bit his lip, and ran. He shot across the bathroom and towards the remaining three. At first, they thought he was gonna run past them and make it for the door. But, to their shock, Taiga instead suddenly latched onto Natsumi and rushed behind him, using the tall scout as a shield. 

Natsumi gasped, temporarily losing his balance, “Oh my! Taiga?”

“You’re in charge? Make them stop!” Taiga burrowed into Natsumi’s back, trying to vanish behind him. 

A sudden protectiveness washed over Natsumi, and the bluenette rounded on Yoichi and Hiro, who looked ready to pounce again. 

“Halt!”

He held up a hand, straightening himself up to appear as big as he could. The two wild ones skidded to a stop. 

“Now, let’s not make Taiga anymore uncomfortable then he already is. While I agree taking a bath together will help us save water and electricity, I do NOT condone your roughness. Let him undress himself and sit where he wants. Am I understood?”

Yoichi and Hiro looked at him silently, exchanging looks. They then looked at Keitaro, who only rose a brow as if silently asking, ‘well?’. 

Outnumbered, the two looked down at their feet and nodded. 

Natsumi smiled brightly, “Good! Taiga? I will  _ ask  _ for you to join us this morning. Come in when you’re ready! Now, I’m going to go turn on the heater.”

He gave Yoichi and Hiro one last look before gently prying Taiga from his shirt, patting his head. 

A dark blush covered his cheeks and he swatted his hand away, only making him laugh as he moved into the shower room to do as he said he would. 

Keitaro smiled, walking up behind Taiga, “You okay? Sorry about those two, they can be rough sometimes, but they mean well.”

Taiga snorted, “Just make sure they don’t attack me next time, Kay?” 

Keitaro sniggered, “I’ll keep an eye on them.”

“Hey!”

The brunette walked over to his locker, pulling off his tank top. Yoichi and Hiro continued to bicker between themselves as they disrobed, trying to pin the blame on the other for getting in trouble. Hunter remained more asleep than awake, his eyes closed as he removed his bunny pajamas.

Taiga sighed, moving to his own locker and slowly taking off his shirt, trying to keep his eyes on the floor. He didn’t understand why he felt so awkward around them. He was pretty used to showering with others, and had no problem taking baths with Eduard and Lee. Maybe it was because they were new to him? But yesterday loosened them all up to each other, so he shouldn’t be too bothered. 

Or maybe… was like Yoichi said. The last time he took a bath with  _ any _ of them, it was Keitaro. And that ended… well… 

He flushed, slapping his face when dirty thoughts crossed his mind. 

Keitaro's eyes widened at the display, “Are you okay, Taiga?”

He nodded hastily, “I-I’m fine, let’s just get this over with!”

Keitaro glanced at him worriedly, but knew that pressing too hard would make the scout angry. So, he decided to keep it to himself. 

Once he had undressed himself, he turned his head to the sound of running water, seeing Natsumi peak his head out from behind the wall, “Water’s all warmed up!”

The other five scouts all slowly moved towards the shower room, taking their place at one of the available shower heads. 

Keitaro took in a deep breath, calming his shaking nerves. He didn’t want a repeat of his first week here the  _ first _ time they took a shower together. He had seen them all before, even Taiga. Keeping that in mind, he gave his cheeks a few pats then rounded the corner, entering the shower room. 

All of his preparedness went out the window the moment he entered. 

“Do you think we’re gonna have an activity today, Natsumi?” Hiro was running the faucet over his head, wetting his hair thoroughly. 

The scout hummed, rubbing his chin in thought, “I’m not sure. We had a badge earning activity yesterday. I think we might have another small activity today, maybe not a badge earning activity, but something of the sort.”

Keitaro took in a shaky breath, moving across the room to take a seat in one of the available stools at the end. 

“Hey, we didn’t have to call you over this time~” Hiro mused, raising a playful brow in Keitaro’s direction. The brunette flushed, turning on his faucet, “Come on! I was just having a rough day with that storm is all!”

The other four laughed, making Taiga raise a brow from the other room. He slowly walked in, seeing the available spot next to Keitaro. He sighed and slowly walked over, setting his towel on the nearby rack. 

“What about the storm?” He asked, sitting down in front of the shower head. Yoichi snickered, leaning back to see Taiga clearly. 

“The first time we all took a bath together, Keitaro ran out at the very end all embarrassed and shit. Probably overwhelmed by our good looks and had to go, well, ‘relieve’ himself in the cubicle~”

“Y-YOICHI! THAT’S NOT WHAT HAPPENED!!” Keitaro lied, his cheeks burning darkly at the claim, despite it being one hundred percent true. Taiga sniggered, “Can’t handle a little nudity, huh?”

Keitaro whirled around in his stool, “T-Taiga!?” 

The redhead smirked, “Hey, just trying to take off some of the tension. And here I thought  _ I’d _ be the one all flustered since I was dragged in here against my will.” 

The emerald-eyed boy squeaked with embarrassment, covering his face with his hands. 

Hiro reached over and patted him on the back, rubbing him gently, “Aww, it’s okay, Keitaro! Everyone gets a bit nervous when a bunch of cuties surround them!”

“HIRO!” 

“Hehehe~” 

Hiro picked up a nearby sponge, dumping it into the bucket filled with soapy water. He twirled his finger around, gesturing for Keitaro to turn around. 

The brunette did as he was told, turning around so that Hiro could scrub his back. He sighed, letting out a low groan of pleasure as the sponge rolled across his skin. He closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh. 

“Umm… Natsumi? I have a question…” Hunter gently spoke up, moving his shower head over his shoulders, letting the water run down his back. 

Natsumi turned to him, nodding in confirmation, “Yes, Hunter?”

“I remember during our first week here, that we go on a camping trip at least once a week. Do you think we’ll go on one today? For our activity I mean?” He inquired, placing the head back into its holder. 

The other boy shook his head, “I don’t think so. They’ll usually give us a day in advance, and I haven’t heard anything about a new trip for us when I’ve talked to the scoutmasters. I think we’ll just be doing a normal activity today.”

Yoichi groaned, “I’d rather not do anything today… I’m getting tired of all these lame activities…”

Hiro rolled his eyes, “Oh hush up, Wolfboy! You say that about  _ every _ activity we do! Does nothing please you!?” Hiro shook the sponge at Yoichi, the large scout shielded his eyes from the flying soap studs. 

“Oi! Watch it!”

Keitaro chuckled, taking his shower head off it’s hook to rinse off his back, “Don’t worry, Yoichi. Yesterday when I was with Scoutmaster Yoshi, we were brainstorming new activities! I actually took you into account and submitted some more physical things, like workouts and such!”

Yoichi froze, a dark blush covering his face at the proclamation, “R-Really?”

He bobbed his head up and down happily. 

“Yep! We talked about physical activities, artsy ones, studious ones, even event themed activities like birthday stuff!”

Natsumi gasped, “Oh wow! I don’t think I’ve heard of a birthday theme activity!”

Taiga froze off to the side. 

Keitaro titled his head, his brows furrowed with confusion, “Really? Do you guys not celebrate birthdays here in Camp Buddy?”

Natsumi dropped his shampoo bottle, waving his hands around hastily, “Oh no, no! We do! We just don’t have activities for them! I do think it’s a splendid idea! Makes me wish my birthday was during the term…” He let out a sigh of sadness, puffing his bottom lip out. 

“When is your birthday, Natsumi?” Keitaro, mentally preparing his memory for the information. 

Natsumi chuckled, “I’ll tell you mine, if you tell me yours.”

Keitaro smiled brightly, “Deal!”

“June 20th, last month actually!”

Hunter gasped, “Really? How old are you now?”

“Twenty. We had a big party for it; my  _ entire _ family was there!” Natsumi replied, clapping his hands at the memory. Hunter rose a brow, “Is twenty a big age here in Japan?”

Hiro nodded, “Yep! That’s the coming of age… well, age. At twenty you’re considered a fully, mentally mature adult!”

Yoichi snorted, “Guess that explains why you’re dumb~”

The organette puffed out his cheeks, “Hey! Just cuz I’m not twenty yet doesn’t mean I’m dumb!  _ You’re _ the dumb one!”

“And yet, of the two of us, which one of us is twenty?” Yoichi asked, pursing his lips slyly. 

Hiro’s jaw dropped, “Whaaaaat!? You’re TWENTY!?”

Yoichi nodded proudly, “Hell yeah! January 21st.”

Hiro gapped, trying to find a witty comeback. But, he only crossed his arms with a huff, turning to his shower head. 

Natsumi chuckled, “Aw, don’t worry Hiro! When do  _ you _ turn twenty?”

Hiro sighed, “Later this year. September 22nd…”

Hunter gasped, “Ooo! The Autumn Equinox! Kinda like my birthday!”

The other scout rose a brow, “The Autumn what-what?”

“The equinox! It marks the first day of autumn and usually occurs on the 22nd or 23rd of September, depending on the year. It’s also an event where the sun passes over the equator, moving from the Northern to the Southern Hemisphere, bringing colder temperatures to us, and warmer climates to places like South America and Oceania!”

While Yoichi sat there trying to cool his fried brain, Hiro was staring at Hunter with buggy eyes. 

“Really!? I didn’t know that! That’s so cool! And… didn’t you say it was like your birthday? Were you born in September too?” 

Hunter shook his head, “No. I was born in March, March 20th to be precise. But that’s when the  _ Spring _ Equinox is. It’s the same thing, marking the first day of spring and the whole sun bit, just the other way around.”

Keitaro smiled, “Your birthday was in March? How old are you?”

Hunter blushed, looking down at his feet, “E-Eighteen…”

The brunette cooed, “Aww, so you’re the youngest of us!” 

Natsumi smiled, “Now, Keitaro! We told you ours! Now when’s  _ your _ birthday?”

The boy rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous smile on his face, “April 8th. During the rainy season. I turned nineteen this year.”

“Oh! So that means Hiro’s older than you! I thought it was the other way around…” Natsumi mumbled, rubbing his chin in thought. Hiro huffed.

Keitaro chuckled, looking over his shoulder to Taiga, who had remained quiet during the whole conversation. He smiled. 

“Taiga?”

Ruby met emerald. 

“When’s  _ your _ birthday?” Keitaro leaned forward, asking him softly. The flame-haired scout only stared at him, contemplating on whether or not he should answer. He knew the hell that would reign if he did, and did so truthfully. 

But, if he lied, he’d never hear the end of it for the rest of the term. 

He exhaled slowly. 

“...What’s today's date?” He asked, making Keitaro’s eyes widen momentarily. The boy hummed, racking his brain. 

“Umm… July 13th? Is that right?” He looked over his shoulder to Natsumi, who held up his wrist to peer at his water-proof watch. 

When he got a confirming nod, he turned back to Taiga and stated firmly, “July 13th!”

Taiga pursed his lips, and eyed the boy silently. 

A few moments passed. 

“...Today.”

“Huh?” Keitaro tilted his head at Taiga’s answer. The scout huffed. 

“Today. It’s July 13th, which is my birthday. So, the answer to your question is,  _ today _ .” 

…

Keitaro sat in silence, slowly processing the statement. Like a timer ticking down second by second, he worked out the answer in his head until… the timer went off. 

“YOUR BIRTHDAY IS  _ TODAY!? _ ”

Taiga jumped at his volume, reeling back when Keitaro threw himself forward, getting in his face. 

Taiga nodded slowly, “Y-Yeah…”

Natsumi gasped from his stool, clapping his hands fervently, “Oh my gosh! Happy Birthday, Taiga! How old are you today?!” 

Taiga blushed darkly, sticking his nose up at the question, “N-Nineteen…”

Hiro and Keitaro’s jaws dropped. The orangette waved his arms around rapidly, shaking his head, “H-Hold on! Keitaro and I are…  _ older than you!? _ ”

Yoichi snorted, bursting out into uncontrollable laughter. He slipped off his stool, falling onto the tiled floor in a heap, clutching his stomach. 

The scout snorted, furrowing his brows in anger, “And that’s why I shouldn’t have said anything.”

Keitaro suddenly shook his head, reaching forward and seizing Taiga’s hands in his own. The boy blushed, Keitaro suddenly only a few inches from him, “Don’t say that, Taiga! It doesn’t matter how old you turn today! All that matters is that we should do something to celebrate!”

Taiga reeled back, turning his head away and trying to push down the blood rushing through his cheeks, “Th-That’s unnecessary…”

From the other side of their line, Hunter moved from his stool and crawled towards them, shaking his head as he went, “Don’t say that, Taiga! Even if it’s something small, we should still do something to celebrate!” He sat down on his knees, clapping his hands together. 

Natsumi nodded, “I agree! Maybe we could try one of those new activities Keitaro and Scoutmaster Yoshi were discussing yesterday,” He suggested, rubbing his chin. 

Taiga ripped his hands from Keitaro’s flailing his arms dramatically, “No, no, no! I  _ refuse _ to have anything done for my birthday that’s organized by  _ Yoshi _ ! Knowing that nut job he’ll make it into some weird ritual and get EVERYONE involved!”

The five all laughed at Taiga’s panic, deep down, simultaneously agreeing with him. 

“Can we at least sing?” Keitaro asked, fluttering his eyes with a smile. 

“ **No** .”

Yoichi sneered, “Come on, Dynamite~ Let us destroy your eardrums with the worst song in history!”

“And that’s why I said  _ no _ !”

Hiro grinned, wrapping his arm around Yoichi’s shoulders, “Too late, we’re doing it anyway. And on three-“

_ “I’M GONNA KILL ALL OF YOU!” _

* * *

After a rather eventful bath, the six members of cabin one had moved to the mess hall for breakfast. Aiden had prepared a rather wide spread of food that morning, ranging from eggs to waffles and even grits. With what they had just learned about Taiga, they wondered silently if Yoshi knew about the event taking place today. He  _ did  _ have records of every scout, so it wouldn’t surprise them if the scoutmaster knew of Taiga’s birthday. 

But for that moment, they were left to eat their breakfast in relative peace. All except Taiga, who was currently being berated with questions regarding his affliction. 

“What do you usually do for your birthday?” Keitaro asked, trying to keep his voice down so that other campers wouldn’t catch wind of it. Taiga groaned, taking a stiff bite out of his toast. 

“Nothing really. I usually just spent time with my moms and a few close friends,” He answered through a mouth full of bread. 

Hunter smiled, “That sounds a lot like what I do. I just spend time with my parents, and they let me choose what we’ll get for dinner that night.”

Keitaro nodded, “That sounds really nice. My sister always throws me a party, even if it's just the two of us. Last year she decided to try out those really big party poppers when I blew out the candles! But… uhh…”

Hiro snorted, choking on his orange juice. He pounded his chest as he forced himself to swallow, then started chuckling hysterically. 

“I assume you were there, Hiro?” Natsumi asked, raising a brow at Hiro’s reaction. He nodded through his laughs, wiping his eyes of a few tears. 

“Hehehe… y-yeah! She bought one of those i-industrial sized ones and… well, hehehe, completely  _ smashed _ a window! She spent the next thirty minutes apologizing to their neighbors when her potted plant landed right on the man’s head!” 

Yoichi wheezed, “Holy shit, hahaha! I want one!” 

Taiga smirked, “Your sister sounds like quite the character.”

Keitaro nodded, “She certainly is. I think you guys would like her!”

Natsumi smiled, “My parents always take me to the beach on my birthday, and we’d spend the whole day swimming! After that in the evening we’d have sashimi for dinner!”

“Sashimi? What’s that?” Yoichi asked, taking a bite of his eggs. Natsumi smiled, turning to face him, “Sashimi is fresh, raw fish sliced into thin pieces, often topped with soy sauce. It’s really good, it's my favorite seafood meal!”

“What the fuck? Sheriff Brokeback told me never to eat raw meat, ever! What gives!?” The fuschia-eyed boy cried out, sending his fork across the table with anger. Natsumi reached over and patted him on the back, giving him a sympathetic smile. 

“Well… most meat can't be consumed raw, or else you’ll get food poisoning. There are only a few types of meat out there that  _ can _ be eaten raw, but you have to make sure they’re properly cleaned and prepared. If not, you’ll run into the same problem of potentially poisoning yourself,” He explained, holding up a finger matter-of-factly. Yoichi huffed, plopping his hand onto his hand in disappointment. 

“What do  _ you  _ do for your birthday, Yoichi?” Keitaro asked, finishing off the last of his plate. 

The large scout grimaced, “I don’t celebrate my birthday much. Yoshinori  _ insists _ on doing something, but I don't have much in the way of positive feelings towards it.”

“Oh? Why’s that?” Keitaro responded, looking at him worriedly. Yoichi looked away, “I’d rather not talk about it.”

“Oh, okay…”

The table went silent, the conversation ending on a rather sour note. 

Taiga was focusing on his plate, hoping that they would drop whatever plan they potentially had for him that day. 

But when Keitaro turned his head back towards him, his trademark smile crossing over his cheeks once more, Taiga groaned in defeat. 

“So, Taiga. If we don’t have an activity to do today, anything you wanna do for your birthday?” He asked, leaning closer to him. 

“Nope. Knowing  _ this _ camp, they’ll make it into a big deal and embarrass themselves. AND me.” 

The brunette pouted, “Come on, Taiga! We gotta do  _ something _ ! Even if it’s as simple as… I dunno, an activity of your choice?”

Natsumi smiled, “Oh, I like the sound of that! We could do something Taiga likes doing!”

“Like what?” Hunter leaned over the table, moving his now empty plate aside. 

“Good morning, scouts!” 

The six turned around at the sound of Yuri’s voice. To their shock, she was the only one standing at the end of the mess hall, Yoshi strangely absent. 

“I hope you all slept well last night! Now, Scoutmaster Yoshi will be absent today since he has business with our president, Mr. Goro. So, for today, you boys are free to do whatever you like!”

Yoichi pumped his fist into the air, Hiro joining him. Yuri chuckled at the sight. 

“Now, I don’t want anyone going and getting into trouble. If you have any questions or concerns, I’ll be here in the mess hall all day with Sir Aiden. Don’t hesitate to come and see me anytime!” She declared, waving her hands around as she spoke. She got a couple of acknowledgements from the scouts, and after she visually confirmed that everyone understood, she moved through the mess hall and back into the kitchen to meet with Aiden. 

Keitaro clapped his hands happily, bouncing in his seat as Yuri walked by, “Yay, a free day! That means we can do what Taiga wants for his birthday today!”

“Great. Can we do nothing?” Taiga deadpanned, letting his head fall onto his hand. 

Keitaro pouted, reaching over to poke him in the cheek, “Come on, Taiga~! It doesn’t have to be a big thing that requires an activity or anything! It can be a small thing, like uhhh… a hobby of yours!”

Taiga swatted his hand away, sighing heavily, “I’m pretty sure that none of you would be interested in my hobbies.”

“Why’s that?” Keitaro asked, taking a sip of the last bit of his orange juice. 

“I’ve told you my hobbies before. I’m more into on hand work like embroidery or modeling. While a few of you might take interest, I know some of you might not as well. And I don’t wanna deal with any complaints from two in particular,” He explained, eyeballing Yoichi and Hiro. 

Yoichi only stuck his tongue out, and Hiro wasn’t paying attention. 

“That’s okay! We can still try one of those hobbies, I’m actually quite interested in that modeling hobby of yours!” Keitaro cried, leaning forward across the table. 

Hunter smiled in agreement, “Me too! Modeling is kinda like sculpting in a way, just with prebuilt pieces and instructions.”

“And it’s such a calming process too! Following all the instructions, putting all the pieces together, and gazing at the final project is so fulfilling!” Natsumi proclaimed, throwing his hands into the air proudly. 

Taiga smiled faintly, looking down at his plate. 

Keitaro immediately noticed this, and leaned down to smile sweetly. 

“Wanna teach us how to make models, Taiga?”

The flame-haired scout hummed, rubbing his chin in thought. 

“Would we all choose our models, or would we do the same one?” Natsumi asked, gathering the plates up from the table and placing them in a neat pile. 

Taiga closed his eyes, “I don’t think Yoshi has six of any models. But he does have a variety of models available. So… I  _ guess _ I could just give you some pointers for making your first models. I made a bunch of mistakes on my first one, it looked like shit.”

Keitaro gasped, “So, you DO wanna make models!?” He leaned forward, cupping his cheeks happily. 

Taiga puffed his cheeks out, turning his head away. 

“...It wouldn’t be the  _ worst  _ thing I’ve done for my birthday.”

The brunette squealed, clapping his hands excitedly, “Yaaaaay! Oh, I’m so excited! Can we start now? Is everyone done-“

“Who, hold your horses there, Keitaro!” Natsumi placed a hand on Keitaro’s head, ceasing the boy’s excited bounces. 

“I think everyone is done, but let’s take this slow alright? We still need to go and toss our plates and such. No rush, we’ve got all day!” He explained, giving him a few pats on the head. 

Keitaro nodded, watching as Natsumi stood up and took their plates away. 

Taiga sighed, laying his head on both of his hands. 

“Will we need to go get Ms. Yuri?” Hunter asked, stretching his arms up, receiving a nod from Taiga. 

“The scoutmasters are the ones who supply the models, so yeah, we’ll have to go get them from her. She said she’d be in the kitchen, right?” 

Keitaro nodded, rising from his seat with a happy sigh. He saw Natsumi walk back over to them, eyes scanning the table for any leftover dishes. After double checking to make sure the table was clean, the six rose up and moved through the mess hall, making their way to the kitchen with Keitaro leading the pack. 

Weaving through other scouts gathering their breakfast, they moved behind the counter and into the kitchen, peering through the doorway to see Yuri and Aiden. Aiden was hard at work washing all the dishes that came from scouts and the ones he’d used to make breakfast with that morning. And as usually, with nothing but his apron on. 

Yuri was sitting on the kitchen island, humming happily as Aiden worked behind her. 

Keitaro was the first to step in, knocking on the door gently to grab their attention. 

“Ms. Yuri? Sir Aiden?” 

The adults looked up at the sounds of their names, smiles crossing their faces at the sight of the group. 

“Oh! Good morning, boys! Did you need anything?” Yuri asked, hoping off the counter. 

He nodded, “Yes, actually. There was something we wanted to do for a… freelance activity, and Taiga said you supplied them?” 

Yuri rose a brow, “Well, that depends on what it is. What did you boys have in mind?” 

“Models!” Natsumi announced with a chirp, clapping his hands together.

Aiden rose a brow from his place at the sink, turning his head to face the group, “Models? Like those figurines you build? I thought Taiga was the only one who used those? He’s the one Yoshi got them for, anyway~”

Taiga blushed, turning his head away. Yoichi elbowed him, raising a brow playfully. The flame-haired scout swatted at him in response. 

Keitaro nodded in agreement, “That’s true, but Taiga’s gonna teach us how to build models today!” 

Yuri grabbed her cheeks, her trademark smile crossing over her cheeks, “Aww, that’s so adorable! Bonding with the odd boy out by doing an activity of his choosing! EEEE, this is right out of a giant-love-poly fanfic and I’m  _ living in it! _ ”

The six took a step back at her choice of words. 

“Uhhh…”

Aiden chuckled, pulling his rubber gloves off to walk over to them, allowing Yuri to reel into the sunset off in the corner. 

“You guys can just pop into the storage shed and grab whichever ones you want, that’s where we keep them anyway. But… I don’t think we have six of the same model for you all to do the same one…” Aiden thought, rubbing his temple. 

Hiro smiled, “No problem, Bro! We’re gonna do different ones! It’d be kinda boring if we all did the same thing anyway.”

“Well, in that case, just head on over to the storage shed! They should be in the big box in the leftmost corner!” Aiden made some gestures with his hand as if he was pointing at a map. 

“Okay, thank you Sir Aiden! Sorry for disturbing you,” Keitaro gave him a quick bow, turning around to make his way out of the kitchen the his boys in tow. 

“No problem! Come show us your models when you’re done!” He called out, giving them a small wave. Yuri didn’t say goodbye, as she was currently occupied with her own fantasies while jumping around in the corner. 

“So… where’s the shed?” Keitaro asked, moving past the food counter and back out into the mess hall. 

Natsumi smiled, skipping forward to take the lead, “Follow me! It’s easy to find!”

* * *

The trip to the shed was short lived. While there, most of them were having a hard time deciding on what to pick. With the amount of dust bothering them, Yoichi simply lifted the box and walked out with it, taking it back to their cabin. 

Now back in the comforts of their lodging, they emptied the box out to overlook all the models Yoshi had bought. Most of them were simple models, made of wood or plastic and nothing too complex. There were two or three larger ones, and even made of metal. 

“Hmmm… I’m not sure which one to pick…” Natsumi hummed, looking over the small piles of boxes. 

Yoichi grinned from his right, picking up one of the model boxes, “I think I’ll try this one. I didn’t know that they made models in metal!” He proclaimed, holding it up in the air. It was model snake, made of metal that twisted around and around itself with a large, open jaw. 

Taiga snorted, “They do, but the ones made of metal are often for more experienced users. I made the mistake of picking my first ever model to be made of metal…”

Keitaro picked up one of the boxes, the image showing a model of a rustic cottage covered in snow. He turned his head at Taiga’s comment, “What do you mean by that?”

Taiga blushed, his mind suddenly flooding with the memory.

* * *

_ “I hate this! I hate every second of this! Whoever thought of this deserves to… to… well NOT HAVE A GOOD DAY!” _

_ Taiga threw the box off to the side, slumping over on the floor. He rolled onto his stomach, letting out a high pitched screech into the carpet below him.  _

_ A pair of footsteps approached him, “Taiga? What’s wrong sweetie?” _

_ “I’m having an existential crisis…” _

_ The voice of a woman chuckled, “You’re eleven.” _

_ “Eleven with feelings of DREAD AND DESPAIR!” _

_ Taiga threw himself up and waved his arms dramatically, falling onto his back in a heap.  _

_ She stared down at Taiga and raised a coy brow, a smile curling as he rolled around on the floor dramatically.  _

_ “My goodness, I thought you were excited to try modeling?” She asked, walking over and placing a small plate down next to him with a few apple slices on it. Taiga rolled onto his side and took one, munching on it with tears in his eyes.  _

_ “But I can’t do it! The screws are too small and I can’t get them to fit and the metal is too tough for me to bend it and the instructions are confusing!!!” _

_ She chuckled, squatting down at pat his head sympathetically, “Hey, it’s okay if you’re frustrated. You can put it away and try again later if you want.” _

_ “But it’s a dragon! And it looks super cool! But it’s too darn hard!” _

_ He finished off the apple slice and sat up, crawling over to her to bury his face into her lap. She smiled, rubbing his back.  _

_ “Is this what real life is like, Mama? No matter how hard you try… you fail?!” _

_ He threw his arms out, draping himself over her legs like a scarf. The woman chuckled, “You are very philosophical for a boy your age…” _

_ “That might be your fault~” _

_ Another voice rose up. She looked up to see a second lady standing in the doorway, a mischievous grin on her face.  _

_ “Oh hush!”  _

_ The other woman laughed, walking across the room to sit down next to them. She reached up and patted Taiga’s head, ruffling his hair.  _

_ “What’s eatin’ ya, squirt?” She asked, Taiga lifting his head with a pout.  _

_ “The dragon’s being a butthead…” _

_ “Is it now? Why’s that?” She asked, picking up the half finished model. A few loose screws fell out onto the floor, and one of the legs subsequently fell off.  _

_ “That’s why! I can’t get the dumb screws to stay on! I can’t twist them enough to get them to stay!” He wailed, rolling off his mother and back onto the floor.  _

_ She chuckled, “Did you use a screwdriver?”  _

_ Taiga shook his head, “No… I thought I wasn’t allowed in the tool box…” _

_ “Well, no. But, if you asked, I would’ve given you one. It says here in the beginning to use a screwdriver to work the screws in properly,” She explained, pointing at the big box of text labeled in red.  _

_ Taiga frowned, “WHY DON’T I READ ANYTHING!?!?!” _

_ The woman laughed, only to receive a gentle slap in the arm from her wife, “Oh stop laughing and help your son before he has a mental breakdown!” _

_ She nodded, sitting down on the carpet and crossing her legs. She pulled a small screwdriver out of her pocket, placing it next to her. Setting down the instructions, she hooked her hands under Taiga’s arm and lifted him off the floor, setting him into her lap.  _

_ “Okay kid, calm down now. With a small screwdriver and a little pair of tweezers, this’ll be easy-peasey!” _

_ Taiga rubbed his eyes, sniffling, “Promise?” _

_ “I promise! Now, where did you leave off?” _

* * *

“Let’s just say I nearly had a mental breakdown…”

Keitaro chuckled, “Goodness, they’re  _ that _ hard?” 

“They can be, if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

Yoichi snorted, looking at the box with the metal model, “Well, you’ve done this before! Just tell me what to do so I don’t screw up like you did!” 

Taiga rose a brow, pursing his lips. 

Keitaro chuckled, “Okay, okay! Let’s not start a fight, boys. But, I think I’ve decided on mine!” He held up the box showing the model house, smiling proudly at his decision.

Taiga raised a brow, “House models can be a bit complex, especially if they have furniture for it. You sure?” 

Keitaro nodded excitedly.

With seemingly no way of convincing him otherwise, Taiga shrugged. He fished amongst the models himself, humming in thought as he looked them over. The one Yoshi had given him the other day was a little too easy for him. He wanted one that might provide him a bit of a challenge to complete. 

He looked over the boxes, biting his lip. He picked up a few of the boxes and looked them over, raising a brow. 

Then he saw a mechanical one. 

Taiga’s eyes widened. He dropped the two boxes in his hand and picked it up, a smile breaking onto his face. 

“No way! I didn’t know Yoshi bought moving models! These things are expensive!” He cried, holding it up. 

Keitaro rose a brow, “Move? Models can move?!”

Taiga nodded, “Oh yeah! They are all different types of moving models, most commonly known as mechanical models. Some have handles to work them, some can even be battery powered. Hmm… seems this one is a handle one… but I’ve never actually tried a mechanical model before!”

Taiga pushed the other boxes away, making a space on the floor as he ripped open the box with a child-like glee. 

He turned the box over and read the title, then gasped. 

“Wait, hold the fuck up! This is a TimeforMachine model!? These things are like, a hundred dollars or something!!! What the fuck Yoshi!?”

The other five scouts all stared at Taiga worriedly as he screamed in what they couldn’t tell was anger or sheer delight. 

“Time for… what?” Hiro asked, looking at the back of the box. 

“They’re a company that makes super complex models, and most of them move! This one is… Heavenly Hercules. It’s a plane that’ll move when you wind it up. It’ll tilt side to side and the propellers will spin!” Taiga explained, pointing at the back of the box. 

Yoichi leaned forward and stared at the box with wide eyes, “Holy shit, that’s pretty fucking cool! No wonder you like doing these things.”

Taiga nodded, “Yeah, now to crack this puppy open!”

He laid the box down and began unboxing it, pulling out the various pieces and long set of instructions. Hiro’s jaw dropped at the sight of it all. 

“Holy crap! That’s a lot of… stuff! How long is that gonna take you?” He asked, leaning over to look at the sheets and bags of pieces and parts. 

Taiga hummed, “Probably… two hours? At the least?” 

“At the least?!” Hiro gapped, receiving a nod from Taiga. 

“Oh definitely. Model’s take time. I can bet you money Keitaro’s gonna take at  _ least _ an hour and a half to do his!” He replied, pointing at the boy in question. He was already working on the first few pieces, lifting his head at the sound of his name. 

“Huh? Sorry, I wasn’t listening…”

Natsumi grinned, picking up his model, “Too excited to wait, huh?” 

Keitaro blushed, “Sorry! The picture on the box just looks so cute! And it's got little furniture and everything and I just, I can’t!” The boy squealed in delight, laying on his stomach to get closer to his pieces. 

As Keitaro tore through his pieces, Hiro leaned over towards Natsumi and Hunter, eyeing their boxes. 

“So, what are you guys gonna make?” He asked, leaning on Natsumi’s arm. The tall scout showed him his box with a smile, “It’s a puzzle model! I put it together, then later I can put something in the middle and solve the puzzle to get it back!” 

Yoichi cocked a brow, “Why would you make a model for the sole purpose of… taking it apart?”

“Well, it won’t come apart  _ that  _ way! They kinda set up the instructions so that you don’t see the puzzle itself until it’s done!” He answered, showing him the display on the back. 

“Oh, so it’s like one of those secret boxes!” Hunter gasped, receiving a positive smile from Natsumi. 

“What kind of model are you doing, Hunter?” Hiro asked, seeing Hunter’s box. It was rather small, making the little scout blush. 

“I-It’s just a paper model of a cherry blossom tree. I wanted to start small.”

“Nothing wrong with that. Might be your best option to go with a paper or wooden one, unlike this one over here,” Taiga spoke up, pointing at Yoichi who was ripping open his box. The metal pieces fell onto the floor, making various clanking noises as the violette turned his nose up at Taiga’s comment. 

“Hmph! This’ll be easy! It’s already got the paper that says what to do, right? I bet I could put it together without it!” He proclaimed proudly, pounding his chest. 

Natsumi frowned, “Yoichi, you should probably read the instructions! You might end up breaking it before you can even put it together!” 

“And get a screwdriver. If you don’t, you’re gonna hate yourself later,” Taiga pipped in, pointing at the box red text box to enunciate his statement. 

“Actually, here, take this one! The box gave me two.” Taiga tossed a tiny screwdriver at Yoichi, who caught it expertly. 

“What the… how am I supposed to use this? It’s so freakin’ tiny!” He turned it around in his hand, gawking at it. 

Taiga smiled, “The end is magnetic,so the screws will actually stick to it so that you can have more movement when placing them. Just trust me on this, man.”

Yoichi snorted, shrugging as he opened up the paper instructions, staring at them for a bit. 

“Yo, Torch-head. What are you making?” He asked, dropping the paper to look at Hiro’s model. 

“It’s a mech! It’s actually from an anime I watch; I didn’t realize that Scoutmaster collected these too! I’ve always wanted to make a gundam mech!” 

He opened his box and pulled out his pieces, bouncing in place as he prepared his spot on the floor.

“Why are there so many words? Dynamite, you do this for  _ fun _ ?” Yoichi huffed, looking over his instructions. Taiga sniggered. 

“Hey, that looks like baby work compared to this. My instructions are straight put into book form!” He waved his book around for emphasis. 

“How long will this take me?” He asked, picking up a sheet of pieces. 

Taiga hummed, “An hour or two give or take.”

“An hour!?” 

Taiga snorted, “Hey, I’m probably gonna be here for three, so no complaining. Just read the instructions and you’ll be fine. I learned that the hard way.”

Yoichi sighed, laying the paper out in front of him. Each of them had begun work on their respective model, every once in a while asking for a piece of advice from Taiga. 

Hiro was the first to finish his model. It was an uncolored model, making him pout a bit at the prospect of having to paint it himself. Hunter left to grab him some paint, and when he returned, the blonde sat against Hiro’s side and guided him as he painted, taking a break from his own model. 

Hunter finished next, with Hiro’s help. Despite the model being made of paper, he was having a difficult time shaping the bottom into it’s spherical shape. Hiro decided to help him along, making comments that it was slightly similar to molding and shaping dough, just more fragile. 

Natsumi finished next, his model looking like a cubic circle. He then spent the next hour attempting to solve it, the sound of wood clicking and clacking filled the room as the remaining three worked. 

Keitaro finished afterwards, jumping up with pride as he finished piecing together his small cottage. He took almost a dozen pictures of it at every given angle, using up a good chunk of his film. 

Yoichi was second to last. As Taiga stated earlier, trying a metal model for a first time model wasn’t the best of ideas. Two hours in he’d thrown the introductions into the air and fell onto his back, yelling hundreds of profanities at the complex build. Taiga took a break from his own to go over and help the stressed scout, despite his protests. 

Taiga was the last one left. The other five scouts watched with intense interest as Taiga skillfully pieced together the plane. He was on the final leg, working with the actual mechanics so that the plane would be able to run. 

“...What are you doing now?” Hiro whispered, laying his stomach to look at the bottom of the plane where Taiga’s hands were. 

“I am… attaching the wires so that when I wind up the switch, the propellers will spin…” He whispered back. It had been nearly three and a half hours since they’d started, and Taiga was also laying on his stomach, eyes focused keenly on the metal. 

“So, it’ll actually like, move and stuff without a battery or plug when you’re done?” Yoichi asked, laying on his back as he watched Taiga work. 

The redhead hummed in response. 

A few more minutes of silence followed, only the sound of Taiga working the pieces together was heard. 

Keitaro leaned forward, admiring the pristine design of the plane. The must’ve been over a thousand pieces for it to look realistic. 

Taiga grinned, glancing over at the last set of instructions. He clicked in the last few pieces, excitement beating in his chest. When he set the last piece in, he drew his hands away, a proud smile on his face. 

“And now…” He reached around and twisted the handle, winding the model. And when he let go, the propellers spun and the plane twisted as if flying through the air flawlessly. 

“WOAH!” Hiro shouted, jumping up onto his hands and knees as it worked. 

“Okay, I admit, that’s fucking sick!” Yoichi grinned, clapping his hands as he sat up. 

“That’s amazing, Taiga! And it looks like it works flawlessly too!” Natsumi proclaimed, peering closer at the model. 

Hunter smiled, “That’s really impressive! I kinda wanna try a model like this one, a-after I’ve had more practice of course…”

Keitaro applauded the work, smiling brightly as Taiga leaned back and stared at it proudly, “That’s so cool, Taiga!”

The crimson-eyed scout puffed out his chest with pride, smiling widely, “Thanks! I’m definitely taking this home after the term ends. Add it to my ever growing collection of models. I’m gonna need another room at this point.”

Keitaro laughed, “I’d really like to see your other models. If you’re this good at making them, I can only  _ imagine _ the things you’ve made before!”

Taiga felt his cheeks grow hot, “W-Well, a lot of my early ones are kinda shitty…”

He smiled, “Most of our early stuff is. You should see some of the early photographs I’ve taken, they look awful. And they’re kinda blurry…”

The group all laughed, their models laid out in a circle before them. 

And in the silence that followed, Hiro’s stomach grumbled. 

“Ah.” He grabbed his belly, smiling sheepishly as a warm blush crossed his cheeks. 

“I take it it’s lunchtime?” Hunter cooed, raising a slim brow playfully. Hiro stuck his tongue out at him, standing up to place his model on his nightstand. 

The group began to place their models in safe locations, mostly on nightstands for those who had them. As their belongings were displayed, Yoichi stretched, and tore through the cabin and towards the door. 

“Last on there’s a rotten egg!” He shouted, sneering at Hiro. The smaller scout gaped, scrambling to run after him, “H-Hey! Get back here, you had a head start!”

When the two wild scouts had left the building, Hunter slipped on his shoes and was quickly joined by Natsumi. 

“We’re gonna chase after them, we’ll meet you two in the mess hall!” Natsumi called back, Taiga and Keitaro still setting their things up. With a wave from Keitaro, the two disappeared, leaving Keitaro and Taiga alone in the cabin. 

“Did you enjoy yourself, Taiga?” Keitaro asked, turning to watch him set the plane on the nightstand carefully. 

“Yeah, I guess. It was… kinda fun sharing my hobby with someone willing to try it,” He admitted, shuffling his feet. Keitaro smiled warmly, “I’m glad. It was the least we could do for your birthday.”

Taiga rolled his eyes, “Come on, it’s not a big deal that you didn’t do anything huge. You found out it was my birthday  _ today _ . I’d be a dickhead to expect a present.”

The brunette sighed, looking down at the floor sadly, “I know but… I just can’t help but feel bad…”

“Don’t, I’m not upset about it. This morning was enough.”

Keitaro looked up, turning to see Taiga staring right at him. 

The two locked eyes, and the whole room went silent. Keitaro felt his heart hammer under his rib cage, a dark blush forming as he stared into Taiga’s shining, ruby eyes. 

The redhead stared back, unsure of why his heart was racing a million miles a minute. 

The silence continued, showing now signs of ending. Until…

“Taiga?”

He jumped, “Y-Yeah?”

“I think I found out what to give you.”

“Hah, for the last time Keitaro, I don’t need-“

“Can you close your eyes?” 

Taiga stopped, his jaw dropping momentarily. He stuttered a bit, “Wh-What?”

“Close your eyes.”

Keitaro smiled, his gaze soft. Taiga leaned back, staring at him skeptically, “You aren’t gonna try anything dumb… are you?”

Keitaro giggled, shaking his head. 

“Do you trust me?” 

Taiga’s mind came to a screeching halt. 

...Did he…?

Not a week ago, he wanted nothing but to see this boy crushed. His jealousy over his popularity overtaking his thoughts. He wanted to watch him suffer, like he had last year. But… he didn’t deserve that. Keitaro had nothing to do with what happened. He’d been nothing but accepting, welcoming, and understanding. He took his hand and pulled him from his dark thoughts forcefully, and surrounded him with people who looked past his mistakes. 

Taiga took in a deep breath. 

And closed his eyes. 

Keitaro smiled, feeling his blush grow hotter. 

He took a few tentative steps forward, closing the space in-between till they were mere centimeters apart. 

Taiga stiffened, feeling Keitaro’s breath on his face. But he kept his eyes squeezed shut as his heart hammered in his ears. 

Then, in the darkness, he felt a pair of soft lips caress his cheek. 

Taiga’s eyes shot open and his jaw dropped a little. The tender blush had now raced across his nose and towards his ear. He felt like he was going to faint at any moment. 

After a moment or two, Keitaro gently pulled away, smiling sweetly.

“...Happy Birthday, Taiga…”

Taiga had lost the ability to speak. He opened his mouth, but his voice died in his throat, only coming out as confused squeaks. 

Keitaro chuckled, “Shall we go?”

He held out his hand, smiling brightly. 

Taiga looked down, pondering what to do. 

Then, without a word, he took the outstretched hand, and nodded. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY! A CHAPTER WITHIN A REASONABLE TIMESPAN!!!
> 
> I had such a blast writing this chapter, it was just a whole lotta fun! Bet ya’ll expected chaos didn’t ya~
> 
> There was one line in this chapter I’ve been excited to write ever since I started (get your hands off me you whores, you h e a t h e n s) thats from a YouTube video XP
> 
> I decided to have the boys try a hobby of Taiga’s choosing for his b-day, which was modeling! I love making models, so it was the easiest for me to write. 
> 
> We also get a flashback from Taiga and his mommies! Taiga was a very dramatic bby, like that video of the dramatic kitten meowing and falling backwards. 
> 
> And some of those models you can actually buy! I’d put links, but I’m afraid of putting links cuz of archive’s rules DX
> 
> And, at long last... TAIGA GETS HIS SMOOCH!
> 
> Now all of his bois have had their kiss! More tensions will be rising once we hit the beach~
> 
> And that’s that for today! I hope you guys enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> NEXT TIME: 
> 
> A week has finally passed since Taiga joined the other side of cabin one. Now, he has to make his decision. Will he stay with his unlikely new friends, or return to his old room?
> 
> STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!
> 
> Let’s Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	16. Day 14: The Decision

_ Journal Entry No. 6: July 14th (08:30) _

_ “Good morning! Here to recall my last few days in camp! _

_ And they’ve been AMAZING!!! _

_ I’ll be one-hundred percent honest, when Taiga first moved in, and things began to go south… I was really worried that this wasn’t going to work. But, after a few days, things really began to look up!  _

_ On the day of my last entry, we didn’t have an activity to do. I’ve noticed we’ve had a lot of free days, only having an activity every other day or so. And Scoutmaster Yoshi has been gone a lot. Ms. Yuri keeps saying that he’s been seeing Sir Goro quite often, and I’m getting a little worried about that. Is he reconsidering closing the camp? I really, really hope the sportsfest changed his mind.  _

_ But, on that day, I decided to piece together my Nature Day poster finally. But then, the most unexpected thing happened… _

_ Taiga asked me to hang out!!! _

_ I was shell shocked at the question, but I immediately scooped him up and accepted! There was no way I was gonna pass the chance up. We went out into the woods and took a lot of pictures of nature, and I even taught Taiga a little bit about photography. He helped me put my nature day poster together, and he even saw that photo I took of him. I was so embarrassed! _

_ But, he let me put it on the poster, and it turned out great in the end!  _

_ The next day, we had another badge earning activity to do. But, instead of that, Scoutmaster Yoshi called me into the office and asked me to look over some ideas for activities we could do. It was really nice, knowing that he trusted me to look over some aspects of the camp. But, unbeknownst to me, the boys were secretly working on an activity, for me!  _

_ At the end of the day, they gave me a really nice gift basket!! Yoichi had Yuki take it to me. Hunter drew a portrait of me. Hiro baked me a fruit cobbler. Natsumi caught me a beetle, who I named Reginald. And Taiga was the one who decorated the basket and brought the idea together! It was the sweetest thing ever!!! _

_ And yesterday was even more fun; it was Taiga’s BIRTHDAY! He turned nineteen, and we all made models. I made this really cute little cottage model, it’s on my nightstand next to Reginald’s cage. We spent the rest of the day just hanging out, and Taiga even got a call from his moms’ later that evening.  _

_ Well, today is the day. The day Taiga decides on whether or not he’s gonna stay with us. I’m super nervous about it, I really hope he decides to stay with us.  _

_ Well, that’s all I have for today. I hope Taiga decides to stay with us in the end.  _

_ Yours Truly,  _

_ Keitaro Nagame _

* * *

“WOLFBOY!!! GIMMIE BACK MY CLOTHES!”

Keitaro snapped from his trance at the sound of Hiro shouting from the bathroom, followed by a series of laughter from Yoichi. 

He smiled, letting out a gentle sigh. He signed off his journal entry and closed it up, placing it back in his nightstand. He gave a small yawn, rubbing his eyes as he rose up from the bed. He quickly fed Reginald, tossing the old jelly cup into the trash can. 

“Morning, Keitaro!” 

He turned around to see Hunter standing towards the center of the cabin, rubbing his arm with sleep still in his eyes. Keitaro smiled, skipping over to give the blonde a hug, “Good morning, Hunter. How’d you sleep?”

“Good… what time is it?” He snuggled into Keitaro’s side, sighing softly at his comforting scent. 

“About eight-thirty. I just got done writing in a new entry in my journal and was about to go get some breakfast. Wanna join me?” He asked, patting Hunter's back as the small boy yawned. He gave a silent yawn, allowing Keitaro to lead him into the bathroom. 

They were greeted by the sight of Hiro running through the bathroom stark naked, hot on the heels of Yoichi and Taiga. The two perpetrators were waving his clothes around, cackling with enthusiasm as Hiro leapt for them. 

“Come on, guys! I’m hungry, gimme my clothes so I can go eat!” He shouted, lunging at Taiga who in turn dodged to the left, ducking right under Hiro’s outstretched arm’s.

“Gotta catch us first!” He hollered back, tossing the clothes right over Hiro’s head and to Yoichi, who caught them flawlessly. 

“GUYS!”

“Haaah… not a moment’s peace with these boys, huh?” Keitaro sighed, drawing a giggle from Hunter. He let the boy go so he could move over to his locker, quietly moving out of the way of the three zooming around the room. 

Keitaro stepped up, skipping right into the path of Yoichi, who skidded to a stop at the sight of him. He used the opportunity to gently pluck Hiro’s clothes from his hands and handed them to Hiro, who used the bundle to cover his exposed nethers. 

“Come on boys, let’s not bully each other.” He gave Yoichi and Taiga a kind, but stern look. Taiga huffed, crossing his arms with a pout, “Eh, I was just getting back at Hiro for yesterday.”

“Then why didn’t you try and get Wolfboy back too? He was the one who started it!” Hiro snipped, yanking his shorts on. Taiga merely gestured to the much larger, much more muscular scout with a coy brow raised. 

Hiro snorted, pursing his lips. 

Keitaro chuckled, moving past them all and over to his locker, pulling the door open to reveal his neatly kempt uniform. He looked around the room as he undressed, noticing one of them was missing. 

“Where’s Natsumi?” He asked, brows furrowed with concern. 

Yoichi snorted, yanking his locker door open, “Off doing his lame chores, as usual. Said he wanted to get them done before our activity today.”

“Oh, we’re having an activity?” Keitaro turned around, bouncing gently on his feet with excitement. Hiro was the one who responded, Yoichi rolling his eyes at the thought. 

“Yeah, apparently it’ll be one to make up for the lack of activities we’ve been having, with Sir Goro here and all,” he explained, securing his bandana around his shoulders. 

Hunter pulled his shirt on, a look of worry etched into his face, “D-Do you think Sir Goro will really change his mind about closing the camp? It's been a week since the sports fest and we haven’t heard anything. Keitaro, did he tell you anything when you organized activities with him the other day?”

Keitaro shook his head sadly, “No, unfortunately. I  _ did _ try asking, but he dodged the question, and he looked pretty nervous about it. So…”

He fell silent, as did the rest of the room. 

Taiga sighed, “Well, all we can do is wait. It’s up to the scoutmasters anyway, so we shouldn’t meddle anymore then we already have.”

Keitaro nodded in agreement, “That’s probably for the best…”

The scout gave Keitaro a pat on the shoulder, the boy’s shoulder sagging with the weight of the uncertainty. 

The other boy only chuckled, fixing his star emblem onto his tie, “Well come on, we need to go eat so that we can get this activity over with.”

* * *

The mess hall was packed with every scout present for that term. Everyone had finished eating breakfast and was now waiting for further instructions from the scoutmasters, who were quietly whispering amongst themselves. 

Yoshi looked particularly worried, while Aiden and Yuri listened with concern written all over their faces. It made many of the scouts closer to them lean in with curiosity trying to pick up on what they were saying, and the ones out of range whisper to themselves worriedly. 

Keitaro’s group was among those closer to the three, and all six of them were leaning in closely to try and hear what had their leaders worried. However, they couldn’t pick up on any of it. 

“What do you think’s going on?” Hunter whispered, leaning over the table to try and keep the conversation secret. Hiro leaned down with him, shrugging his shoulders as he went, “No idea. Maybe it’s about what we talked about earlier? With Sir Goro and such?”

Natsumi shuddered, “I hope not. I don’t know what I’ll do with myself if the camp closes down for good!” The scout let his head fall into his hands dramatically, flopping against the table. Keitaro reached across to pat him on the head reassuringly, but he said nothing, being unsure himself. 

Taiga sat more off to the side, his mind deep in thought. Not only was the weight of Goro’s decision causing them stress, but he had his own decision to make that day. Was he gonna stay with Keitaro, or leave? 

His heart was genuinely torn. On one half, he wanted to return to his old cabin with Eduard and Lee, now with Seto and Felix in tow. But on the other hand, while he wouldn’t say it out loud, he’d grown fond of the shenanigans he’d gotten into with his unlikely cabin mates. Keitaro was the first person to see right through his angry persona without issue, and didn’t hesitate to pull him into his warm, loving embrace, despite all he’d put him through. He even coaxed his friends to give Taiga another chance, and while a few of them, mostly the ones from last year and Keitaro’s closest friends, were still a bit hesitant… they’d all moved forward and given him a chance at new friendships again. Something he’d wanted ever since that incident last year. 

Eduard and Lee however… they had stuck with him despite it all. He was truly grateful for them, seeing no one else fit to call his best friends. But… he had noticed something over his first week with Keitaro. 

Eduard and Lee were becoming a bit more hostile with Taiga gone. He’d seen it from afar, the issues and arguments they’d have with Seto and Felix. It made him worry about them. Would they be okay without him? Should he go back to keep them from falling apart? 

But… would that be healthy? They needed to realize that they could have friends besides himself, and that they shouldn’t grow hostile to those willing to hold out their hands to them. 

But how was he going to do that? If he decided to stay, he would be unable to guide them; but if he went back, he’d be leaving this new chance behind. 

Was there some way to get both? 

“Taiga?” 

Taiga jumped, whirling around at the sound of his name. Keitaro was staring at him with worry etched in his brows, “Are you alright? You’ve been zoned out for about ten minutes now.” 

The rest of the group were all staring at him, most of them wearing the same looks of concern for him. Taiga nodded, rubbing the back of his neck to try and relive some of the tension. 

“Yeah, sorry just… lost in thought.”

“Clearly.”

“Attention!” 

The boys turned around to the sound of Yoshi’s voice. The scoutmasters had stopped their conversation and were now facing the scouts. Yoshi stood towards the front, and he cleared his voice to speak. 

“Alright, we’ll be having a small group activity today! Since the weather is nice, we’ll be working out on the obstacle course! You’ll be free to choose whatever activity you want, and are free to pick any partners you want, even a friend in a different cabin. Sir Aiden will be overseeing the activity, so if you have any questions or need any recommendations, don’t be afraid to ask! Ms. Yuri and I will be on sight to make sure no one gets into any trouble and we’ll be ready with first aid in case someone over does it. Any questions?”

When a wave of no’s and head shakes rolled over the scouts, Yoshi smiled, waving his arm up, “Then let’s get off our feet! Go ahead and get changed into your uniforms from the sportsfest and come to the obstacle course when ready!”

* * *

The obstacle course was truly alive, like it had been at the sportsfest just a week before. Many the scouts were already gathered into their desired partner and or groups performing stretches.

Keitaro was sitting on the grass, holding down Yoichi’s feet as the muscular scout performed a series of sit-ups flawlessly. 

“I’m not sure if sit-ups count as a ‘warm-up’ and not as an actual workout…” Keitaro mused, giggling when Yoichi blew a raspberry at him in defiance. Hiro was running in place, wanting to try his hand at the track again. Natsumi had offered to help Hunter with his warm-ups, easing the boy’s worries when he had trouble with some of the moves. 

Taiga was absentmindedly working his arms, his mind far from the task at hand. He kept stealing glances at Eduard and Lee, who were off to the side of the field. They seemed put out, huddled close together and glaring at anyone who walked by. 

The scout frowned, worry filling his chest at the sight. 

He heaved a sigh, his gaze falling back onto the ground, brows furrowed in concentration. 

“Taiga? Are you alright?” 

He looked up to see Hiro moving closer to him, still doing his run in place. The boy sighed. 

“It’s Eduard and Lee. I’m getting a little worried about them…” He admitted, not wanting to have them pry it out of him. Hiro rose a brow, “Worried? Why for?”

“They seem… hostile, towards everyone. I know it’s because I left, but I kinda hoped that… me leaving would’ve given them a push to make friends other than me. But, it seems it’s had the opposite effect.” 

Keitaro felt a pang of guilt hit him in the chest, making him look away. 

“What are you gonna do about it, if anything?” Hiro inquired, stopping his run to stretch out his legs. 

Taiga hummed in thought, rubbing his chin. 

“...Hey, Keitaro?” 

The brunette turned his head at the sound of his name, looking up at Taiga, “Y-Yeah?”

“You mind if I do this activity with them?”

His eyes widened momentarily, “H-Huh? Uhh… not really, why do you ask?”

Taiga sighed, “I just didn’t want to make it seem like I was trying to run away from you or anything.”

“Taiga, I don’t  _ own _ you. If you wanna go do this activity with them, I have no right to stop you,” Keitaro responded, gently twisting around to face him fully. 

Taiga sighed, letting a tiny smirk come to his face, “Thanks. Well, I’ll catch up with you at dinner then.”

With a wave of his hand, he spun on his heel and walked away. 

As he marched away, Keitaro felt a wave of sadness pool into his heart. He knew he had no right to make Taiga stay; but a part of him wanted to so badly. If he wanted Taiga’s full, complete trust, he needed to give him space to make his own decisions, even if that meant letting him go back to his cabin. 

He turned back around to face Yoichi again, using every ounce of his willpower to keep his tears down in his heart. 

As Taiga moved through the crowd, many of the scouts got out of his way in a hurry. Though, there were a number of them that merely stared at him oddly, like they were watching a ghost walk by in broad daylight. 

Taiga kept his eyes on the ground, trying to ignore the multitude of gazes following him. He’d been rather quiet around the camp recently, being confined to Keitaro’s little group. Now that he was alone, the campers were weary, keeping their distance from him. 

It hurt.

He let out another sigh, looking up to see Eduard and Lee sitting on a bench nearby, huddled close together and glaring at anyone who passed by. 

“I can’t believe we have to do this stupid activity. Do they know how messed up my makeup’s gonna get if I sweat too much?” Eduard cried, pulling back on his face a bit to emphasize his point. Lee nodded in agreement.

“Indeed. I don’t understand why we have to partake in such physical tasks. They should know by now that not everyone here is physically adept to handle these strenuous work-outs!”

Taiga felt a smile crawl onto his face. He shook his head, silently missing the banter between the two whenever the activity required a lot of body work. 

“And I can’t believe that headphones-guy and the rich kid asked us to do it with them! They got moved into our cabin because Taiga was taken away from us, not because we wanna be friends!” Eduard snapped, lightly punching the bench. 

Taiga snickered, “Aww, and here I thought you four would get along.”

The two shot up, their heads whipping around to see him standing only about a meter from them. 

“T-Taiga!” Eduard leapt from the bench, his scowl shifting into a bright smile at the sight of him. The redhead dug his foot down into the dirt to provide a weight as the boy raced to close the distance between them. 

“I-I can’t believe it! It’s been a week since we’ve seen you!” Eduard wailed, wrapping his arms around Taiga’s torso, giving him a tight hug. 

He snorted, reached up to pat Eduard’s back, “Well, I figured since it’s been a while, I’d do this activity with you two.”

Lee had stood up and rushed over, fixing his glasses in shock, “Wh-What? You’re going to join us in this activity? And… your captors have no qualms with it?”

Taiga sighed, “First, they're not my captors. Second, yes, they don’t have a problem with it.”

Eduard and Lee both exchanged looks of uncertainty. They glanced over at Keitaro and his group, but were shocked to see they had already gone off to do their workouts. 

“W-Well, in that case; we’d love to partake in this activity with you!” Lee stood up straight, smiling proudly. 

Taiga nodded, “Good. Let’s just do a light jog then; I’m not in the mood to do anything too extreme. Besides… I have to talk to you two.”

The tone of his voice shifted from casual to stern, making the two scouts jump in shock. But with Taiga’s being so short, they merely nodded in understanding, following the boy as he led them over to the track. 

The three placed themselves in the grass, starting some light stretches. Taiga had to help the two with their warm-ups, instructing them on how to do them properly without tearing anything. Once their muscles were good and loose, Taiga led the two onto the track and began to jog lightly, Eduard and Lee flanking his sides. 

They ran in silence for a minute or two, letting themselves fall into the rhythm of the jog. 

Taiga took in a deep breath, flaring his nostrils nervously. He smacked his lips and puffed out his cheeks. Dropping his pace, he placed himself right in-between Eduard and Lee. 

“So, how have you two been?” He asked, wanting to start this conversation calmly. 

Eduard was the first to respond, “Ugh, it's been TERRIBLE! Ever since you left and those two moved in, I haven’t had a moment of peace!” 

Lee nodded in agreement, “I concur. Seto and Felix are horrendous replacements as roommates! While they do clean up after themselves, the two are so noisy with each other. And Aihara is always up late at night, it keeps me from sleeping!”

Taiga hummed, “I see. Have you attempted to talk to them about this problem?”

“Uh, yeah! But they don’t listen to us!” Eduard wailed, throwing his arms about. Taiga took in a deep breath, working out his shoulders, “And, what tone are you using when you talk to them?”

Lee rose a brow, “Tone? What do you mean by that, Taiga?”

“I mean not  _ what  _ are you saying to them, but  _ how _ are you saying it to them? A sentence can change entirely based on your tone of voice,” he explained. 

“W-Well… we uh, speak with irradiance of course! Because that’s how we feel!” Lee responded, pointing his finger up. 

Taiga cocked a brow, “And don’t you think someone constantly yelling at you for going about your day seems like a bit much?”

The two choked on their words. 

Eduard picked up his pace, reaching out to grab Taiga’s arm, “B-But… that’s how-“

“I did it?”

They went silent. 

Taiga sighed, “Guys, look. I understand that me moving into a new cabin was a really big change. None of us expected it, but it’s something we’ve had to work through. I’ll be honest with you, I was secretly hoping that me leaving would push you two into making other friends. I don’t want you to feel like you’re bound to me in some way.”

“B-But Taiga! No one here likes us, you’re our only friend!” Eduard wailed, squeezing Taiga’s arm. 

But the redhead shook his head, “And you two were  _ my _ only friends. But… when I got moved into that cabin… something changed.”

“HEY TORCH-HEAD, RACE YA ACROSS THE TRACK!!!”

“YOU’RE ON WOLFBOY!!!”

Suddenly, Yoichi and Hiro whizzed past them, running as fast as their legs could carry them. Taiga sniggered, and held his hand up to his mouth,  _ “Ten bucks on Hiro!” _ He shouted.

“OI!”

“HA!”

Taiga laughed as the two squawked at him, tearing down the track while dodging other campers. 

Eduard and Lee were staring at Taiga with looks of shock and bewilderment, taken aback by the seemingly friendly exchange. 

“I was wrong.”

Lee rose a brow, “About…?”

“Keitaro. He’s not the villain I made him out to be…” 

Eduard pursed his lips, “Uh-huh…?”

Lee closed his eyes in thought, “And what exactly made you think that and change your perspective overnight?”

Taiga huffed, “Look, it didn’t happen overnight, okay? I-It’s just… a lot has happened over the last few days, and well… I realized that he’s not been faking it this whole time, and that he really is just interested in being my friend…”

They all went silent for a moment. 

“Meanwhile, I’ve been a jerk and treated everyone, including you two, like crap just because I was insecure… so…”

Taiga slowly came to stop, pausing in the middle of the track. 

“I wanna say sorry… to both of you…”

Eduard and Lee skidded to a stop, their eyes wide with disbelief and shock. Eduard took a few tentative steps forward, holding his arms out shakily, “T-Taiga… are you serious right now?”

Taiga snorted, crossing his arms angrily, “Y-Yeah… why would I joke about this!?”

He closed his eyes, “You two have to admit, I wasn’t really being a good friend, making you guys fall into my bad habits. What’s worse is that because of it, we almost became the bullies we got away from last year…”

He turned away to look out over the field, “This past week has made me think a lot back on my actions. Despite my protests in the beginning, I’ve truly begun to enjoy Keitaro, and everyone else’s company. They’re a riot. Fun to be around, great listeners, and everything in-between. They’ve made me feel like… I’m a part of Camp Buddy again…”

He looked back to them, “And I want the same for you two as well.”

Eduard and Lee took a step back, “Wha… whatever do you mean, Taiga?”

“I don't want you two to feel obliged to stick to my sides at all times. Because of how isolated we…  _ I _ became, we were falling down a pretty bad path. I want you two to be able to make friends outside of just me, and for us to go back to the life we had here last year, before everything went to shit.”

Taiga smiled, a genuine, bright smile, “I haven’t said anything about this to them yet. I don’t think I’m ready. But, of all the people I owe apologies here to, you two are the ones who deserve them the most.”

Eduard and Lee looked like they were on the verge of tears. The green-haired scout took a shaky step forward, “I-It’s been so long since we’ve heard you utter such words, Taiga… this is exactly the knight in shining armor I admired from the start!”

Eduard didn’t hide it as tears dribbled down his cheeks, “More like my prince-charming~! We always knew this side of you was still in there, that’s why we stuck around~!”

Taiga looked away, his cheeks tinted pink, “C-Come on guys, don’t make this any more awkward that it already is…”

Eduard hiccuped, “S-So, does this mean you’re coming back to us? To our cabin?” 

Taiga looked down at his feet, taking a deep breath. 

“I’ve actually done a lot of thinking about that. At the beginning of my time there, Keitaro told me if I was unhappy at the end of the week, I could return. But… to my… immense shock… I’m not unhappy. I’ve… I can’t describe it. So, I actually think I’m gonna stay.”

Lee gasped, the tears now flowing down his cheeks, “What!? B-But, Taiga-“

“Now before you two panic, let me explain my thought process here. I don’t want the three of us to shun everyone away again, and I think us being in different cabins is the key to preventing that. I’m not gonna shut you out my life forever, if that’s what you’re worried about. I want you two to make friends besides me, you deserve it,” He took in a deep breath, “And I want you two to actually try. Seto and Felix have tried to engage in conversation with you right?”

They nodded. 

“I want you two to try and take them up on that offer.  _ And _ apologize for the drama you’ve caused them!” He held up a finger sternly, like a mother scolded her children. 

Eduard sniffled, “B-But… what if we don’t see you as often?”

Taiga rubbed his chin. Then, he smiled.

“Tell you what. Join us for dinner. Not just tonight, but for the rest of the term. You can get to know them as well, and hopefully you’ll see what I do. And, bring Seto and Felix along with you. Does that sound like a fair trade?”

Eduard and Lee exchanged looks of uncertainty. They stared at each other in silence, as if communicating telepathically. 

A pregnant pause hung in the air. 

They turned back, smiling at Taiga and nodded. 

“Y-Yeah… that sounds good…” 

Suddenly, Eduard jumped forward and flung his arms around Taiga, making the redhead sputter for air. 

“Awww, I’ve missed this Taiga so much!”

Taiga felt his cheeks grow hot, “G-Gah! Eduard! Get off of me!” He looked around frantically, hoping no one was paying attention to three standing in the middle of the track. But Eduard only tightened his grip. 

“No way! I’ve not been able to give you a hug in like, forever!”

“Let me in too!”

With Lee’s declaration, the small scout jumped forward and slammed into Taiga, finally knocking him off his feet. The three yelped as Taiga fell backwards onto his back, clutching the two tightly to try and keep their heads from hitting the ground. 

Despite the pain of the fall, Taiga couldn’t help but chuckle, feeling the two burrow their faces into his neck, “G-Guys…!”

From the other side of the field, the five watched the scene with shock and bewilderment. 

Yoichi heaved a sigh, “I guess he’s gonna go back to his old cabin?”

Natsumi nodded, a bit sadly, “I don’t know why they’d have that reaction any other way.”

While they continued to talk amongst themselves, Keitaro’s eyes fell to the ground sadly. Despite his innermost desires to have Taiga stay, he didn’t want to ruin the friendship he’d been able to make. He wanted Taiga to be happy, and if it was apart from them, he’d accept it. 

A stray tear rolled down his cheek.

* * *

The activity was halfway done, with most of the campers returning to their respective cabins for rest. 

Keitaro’s group hadn’t finished yet, Hunter and Natsumi were sitting off on the side watching Hiro, Yoichi, and now Taiga compete in various activities. While they were distracted, Keitaro found himself sitting alone off to the side. 

Eduard and Lee had gone back to their cabin, along with Seto and Felix. With Taiga most likely going back to his old cabin, Keitaro had a few words he wanted to say to the two. Something he’d wanted to say towards the start of his time with Taiga. 

Taking advantage of his distracted cabin-mates, Keitaro slowly crept away from the obstacle course and made his way back to their cabin, jogging through the camp grounds. 

When the cabin was in sight, he slowed to a walk, allowing his muscles to relax a bit before he presented himself. He walked up the stairs, slowly moving towards the wooden door that held the other side of his cabin.

His heart began to thump against his chest nervously. He slowly closed the gap between him and the wooden barrier, fixing his tie as if preparing for an important interview. 

He sucked in a breath, closed his hand into a fist, lifted it…

And knocked on the door. 

He heard a few noises on the other side, mainly sounding like an argument as to who was going to get it. 

After a short pause, the doorknob jiggled. 

It opened slowly, and Felix popped his head out. 

“Oh, Keitaro! What can I do for you?”

Keitaro smiled weakly, “H-Hey, Felix. I was wondering if Eduard and Lee were in; I need to talk to them.”

“O-Oh, they are. Just a second”- He tucked his head in-“ _ Eduard, Lee, it’s for you! Who? Keitaro, he said he needs to talk to you… okay.  _ Come in.”

Felix opened the door completely, allowing Keitaro to step inside. 

The cabin was the same structurally, but the interior looked drastically different. Clothes were scattered everywhere, almost every physical surface was occupied by makeup, piles of paper, clothes, etcetera. 

When he drew his eyes from the floors, he saw Seto sitting on one of the beds in the corner, playing a game on his PnsP. He looked up and waved when he saw him, “Sup’, Keitaro! Welcome to the most disastrous cabin in history!”

Keitaro chuckled, shaking his head, “I-It’s fine, I don’t mind…”

When he looked to his left, he saw Eduard and Lee sitting on the front most bed, staring at him. Their expressions were unreadable, and it made Keitaro shudder nervously. Felix closed the door behind him and skipped off to the end of the cabin, picking up one of the tucked away chairs. He ran back and placed it in front of the bed, gesturing for Keitaro to sit down. 

Muttering a ‘thank you’, he slowly moved around and sat down, lacing his fingers together. 

Felix moved away once more, this time going to climb into Seto’s bed and hide behind him, tucking himself into the boy’s side. Seto wrapped an arm around Felix’s shoulders, giving him a reassuring squeeze. 

The room went deadly silent. 

Lee was the first to speak. 

“So, you had something of importance to discuss with us?” He asked, his tone low and stern. 

Keitaro nodded, “Y-Yes. It’s about… uh… Taiga.”

Eduard’s eyes narrowed momentarily, “What about Taiga? He’s decided to stay with you, and you’re the one that made him move there. Shouldn’t you be happy?”

Keitaro winced at his harsh tone, looking down at his feet. 

“Umm, w-well… I just wanted to uhhh… apologize…”

The two stared at him for a moment, completely silent. Eduard crossed his arms, leaning back a bit, “For?”

“...My side of the bet. I… I admit, it was really petty to have him move in with us. But… something about Taiga drew me to him, despite how… uh,  _ aggressive  _ he was at first. I didn’t want to just make him do something like apologize and have it mean nothing. I wanted to be his friend, and I needed to be close to him to do that. But… at the same time…”

“You forced Taiga to switch cabins without first consenting others, including your own comrades and even the scoutmasters!” Lee snapped, gritting his teeth. 

He looked down at the floor again, “I-I know… but, most importantly, it wasn’t fair to you. I took away your friend without so much as a prior warning, and from a bet that  _ I _ orchestrated. But the reason I did so was… something about Taiga always rubbed me the wrong way…”

“WHA-“

“N-Not like I hated him, no! B-But… every time I talked to him, before the sportsfest, there was something in his eyes that just… called to me. I always saw… pain…”

Eduard raised a brow, “Pain?”

“Yeah, like… someone had hurt him in the past, and that’s why he was so aggressive and agitated. I don’t know what, he hasn’t said anything. I  _ do _ know about the incident and Taiga’s involvement, but I don't know much beyond the broad strokes. But, I wanna ask Taiga first and foremost. I want to know his side of the story, because I’ve heard everyone else’s.”

Eduard and Lee exchanged looks. They held each other’s gaze for a few minutes, making Keitaro squirm uncomfortably at the silence. 

“...You haven’t heard ours.”

Keitaro stood up straight, his eyes wide, “Wha…”

Lee narrowed his eyes, “You haven’t heard our side of the tale. Believe it or not, there is much to the story of last year’s incident. Many of the other campers believe that Taiga was responsible for the violence, but it’s false!”

Keitaro gasped, “Wh-What?”

Eduard nodded, “When we first met Taiga, he was kind and approachable. I can tell you the fabulous story of how I came to grace this camp with my presence to start off!”

Keitaro smiled, leaning back in his chair with a nod. 

“When I first started, I was in the same group of campers as Taiga and Lee, so like, obviously we had to stick together. Hashtag besties. My entrance into camp was so fabulous! As I walked through the arch, everyone was like, in awe with my OOTD!” 

Keitaro rose a brow, “OO… TD?” 

Eduard rolled his eyes, “Eew~! You really don’t have any fashion sense at all! It means ‘Outfit Of The Day,’ doofus!”

Keitaro smiled weakly. 

“As I was saying! I pulled off my best look that day for my grand entrance! I even posted it on Instaglam!~ It got over 5 million likes! I was beautiful! I was perfect! I looked like Lindsey Evangelista! I was a model! And the paparazzi couldn’t stop taking pictures of me, since I was like, the most elegant being that had ever seen! They were all like: ‘Eduard Fitzpatrick, you smile is beautiful~’” 

…

Seto sniggered in the background. 

Lee let out a long sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Eduard… that story is absolutely fabricated. You tripped into a mud muddle when you first entered the camp. In addition, it does not have any relevance to the current inquiry.”

Eduard rolled his eyes, crossing his arms with a huff, “Ugghhhh! Leeeeee! Puhhhhlease! I was trying to have a moment here!”- He waved his hand at Lee- “Besides, that’s like, how I choose to remember it after all.”

Lee shook his head, “Just explain the factual occurrences please.”

Eduard groaned, “Fiiiiine… but it’s like, not so fabulous at all. It’s actually like, a total let down. At first, everything was alright, but then like, I tried to make some new friends; like any new camper would normally do!”

Keitaro nodded in agreement. 

“So one time at lunch, I tried to sit with a group, but like, as I sat down they totally got up and left! I thought they had maybe just finished eating, and didn’t think about it too much. But then while I was eating, someone threw yogurt in my hair!”

Keitaro gasped, watching as Eduard scooted closer to Lee, who placed a comforting hand on his thigh, “They started calling me names like ‘McSissyPants’ and ‘PansyNansy’. I didn’t even know them! And more importantly, they didn’t even know me!”

Keitaro looked down at the ground, twiddling his thumbs together, “That… that sounds horrible…”

Eduard nodded, “I know, right? How could they be so rude, to someone so fab-“

“Ed! Please proceed to the point already!”

With Lee’s interruption, Eduard huffed and rolled his eyes, “I am! I am! Sheesh! So yeah, one time the scoutmasters made us do an activity. It was a physical activity, and you know me, I’m not really that sporty… so I was at the bottom of the list. Nobody wanted me on their team just because I couldn’t throw a stupid ball into a stupid basket! The campers started mocking me, saying stuff like ‘Go back to playing with your Varive dolls’, which really hurt my feelings!”

He rubbed his arm dejectedly at the memory, “Not that I hate playing with those, but they made it sound like it’s the wrong thing to like! I thought it couldn’t get any worse… but…”

He squeezed his eyes shut, tears threatening to spill forth. 

Keitaro said nothing, only giving him a reassuring smile to show he was listening. 

The pinkette took in a shaky breath, “But then some of the boys dragged me into a hidden corner and started beating me up while calling me names.”

Keitaro’s eyes widened in shock, “What?! They assaulted you!? Didn’t the scoutmasters intervene!?” 

Eduard shook his head, “There wasn’t anyone there at the time… and they said they’d make it worse if I called for help…”

But, despite the drastic turn in the story, Eduard suddenly smiled, “I was about to start crying when a miracle happened! My knight in shining armor, my hero, Taiga arrived! He came in and beat the snot out of those bullies like it was nothing! And I’ll never forget the words that he said: ‘How dare you bully someone just because of who they are?!’”

Keitaro smiled, “I knew there was a kind heart in there. I’ve actually started to see some of it recently.”

Eduard nodded, “Oh yeah, when Taiga joined the camp last year, he wasn’t anything like he is now… he was kind of like you, Keitaro.”

“Like me?” He tilted his head. 

“Well, he was just really friendly and kind… even cheerful most of the time! I thought Natsumi and Yoichi would have told you that! They used to be roommates after all!”

Keitaro smiled, “I knew that they met last year, but I had no idea they were roommates.”

The flamboyant scout nodded, “Well, they totally missed out on a lot about Taiga. After he defended me from those bullies, Taiga became my hero. But that made him some enemies too… which led to that dreadful event last year…”

“Well… I’ve heard Natsumi and Yoichi’s side of the story, alone with Scoutmaster Yoshi. All I heard was that… well, Taiga was exposed as a cheater during last year’s event which ended up in a serious fistfight… but I’ve been taking that with a grain of salt. I really want to know Taiga’s point of view though, it’s not fair to just listen to what one side has to say.”

Eduard and Lee stared at Keitaro, the two seemingly shocked at his proclamation. 

Lee leaned in towards Eduard,  _ “Is… this what Taiga’s seen?” _

Eduard shrugged,  _ “Must be… I wasn’t expecting him to be so… oh what’s the darn word…” _

_ “Understanding?” _

_ “That’s it!” _

_ “Should we…?” _

Eduard sighed, sitting back up, “Lee and I promised Taiga that we wouldn’t let anyone know about it… but I think it would help you understand him if you do. He just wants to be understood and accepted after all…”

Keitaro held his breath in anticipation. 

“Well… Taiga was really just a victim. At least if we’re talking about what happened last year.”

...Victim?

Lee held up his hand, “I know what you’re about to ask. If you think about it, why did Scoutmaster Yoshi not take direct action to rebuke Taiga last year if he really was responsible for that scandal?”

Keitaro hummed, “I… guess that makes sense. If Taiga  _ did _ cause the event, wouldn’t they have kicked him out or something?”

Eduard nodded in agreement, “As I’ve said before, Taiga had made some enemies while defending Lee and I from our bullies… and that brings us to the time of the first sports competition. The five of us, Taiga, Lee, Natsumi, Yoichi and I, were all in the same group. Taiga really wanted our team to win,but we didn’t even get a chance to compete because we won by default.”

“Default?”

He nodded, “Someone from the other team showed up covered in bruises, saying Taiga beat them up and threatened them to lose the competition.”

Lee’s eyes fell sadly, “And that’s where everyone was wrong.”

Keitaro’s heart was pounding.

“While it's correct that Taiga did want to win the prize, he did not perpetrate the crimes he was accused of,” Lee explained, his hands tightening momentarily. 

Keitaro’s jaw dropped once more, “R-Really? But everyone I’ve talked to says that it was…”

Eduard shook his head wildly, “That’s just it! They were so mean! They convinced everyone that it was Taiga, when he didn’t do anything wrong! Those jerks even beat up their own teammate, and made it look like Taiga was the one who did it by forcing that poor boy to lie!”

His eyes fell to the ground, tears polling in his eyes, “Taiga would never hurt someone who didn’t deserve it!”

Lee squeezed Eduard’s leg, taking his hand for reassurance, “Anyways! To continue our story, everyone assumed that Taiga had cheated to win, and his enemies used that as yet another excuse to physically assault Taiga. We tried to defend Taiga back then, but unfortunately, they overpowered us with their brute strength.”

“They attack you  _ too _ !? That’s awful!” Keitaro wailed, his imagination taking hold and picturing the brutal skirmish. 

Eduard sighed, “I know, right!? And then Taiga-bless him-tried to fight back, but that just made the whole thing worse. He accidentally really hurt one of those jerks. I’m talking a fucking ambulance rushed him off for emergency surgery hurt!”

Keitaro couldn’t say anything, he was at a loss for words. 

“They deserved it, but it was too late for Taiga at that point. Sir Goro was there and , oh my god did he start flipping out!”

“Indeed. And to make matters worse, Sir Goro was hosting some visitors from the surrounding city, who were quick to spread the incident throughout the town.”

“Before we knew it, people were leaving the camp left and right… and then it seemed like the ones who were left blamed every bad thing that happened on Taiga! Like  _ he _ was the one who messed everything up!”

Lee closed his eyes, shuttering to himself, “We would constantly discover Taiga bandaged up and beaten, his body covered in marks and wounds… we were certain that those bullies were assaulting him clandestinely, but he refused to allow us to inform the scoutmasters…”

Keitaro’s brows furrowed. He clenched his hands tightly in his lap, his knuckled going white. His vision became spotted as a wave of pure, unbridled  _ rage _ washed over him at the thought of seeing Taiga in such a state. He tightened his jaw, trying to keep himself from lashing out at the improper time. 

He’d have his chance to get it out at the first of next month with his sister. 

He took a deep breath, and placed a hand on his chest, “S-Sorry. I just… I can’t believe he went through something so horrible. It makes me… angry. Did nobody do anything to help him?”

Lee shook his head sadly, “Unfortunately, these antagonists were quite clever. they were rarely present at the same time as the scoutmasters, and therefore were never caught. One time, finally, when we were attacked alongside Tiga, Scoutmaster Yoshinori was able to finally witness the assault. He immediately evicted the perpetrators, and apologized to Taiga for believing him to have committed the prior crimes.”

Keitaro sighed, “So that’s why Scoutmaster Yoshi is so lenient with Taiga… he knew the truth.”

Eduard nodded, “Yeah! We were there when he encouraged Taiga to get up and move past his bullies. Scoutmaster Yoshi saw that Taiga sincerely wanted to be a better person…”

“It seemed that Scoutmaster Yoshinori would not allow Taiga to continue staying in the camp and even forbade from joining again at first. I suppose it was for his own good and in order to spare him from the threat of the aggressors.” 

“But Taiga begged Scoutmaster Yoshi for one more chance, begging to let him enlist again for the next summer…”

Lee smiled, “We promised to come with him and help however we could…”

Eduard nodded in agreement, “I thought this year would be different, and Taiga would get a fresh start, but things started out so differently… his behavior started to change… and Lee and I were so afraid he’d turn into the ones who’d hurt him last year.”

They fell into silence. 

“But… then, earlier today… Taiga approached us after having stayed with you for a week. He was… kind and approachable, like he was before everything happened. It was hard to believe at first…” Eduard rubbed his neck, letting out a gentle sigh. 

Lee looked up at Keitaro, his arms crossed, “It appears that bunking with you has resolved the dispute that you two had. In fact, Taiga was quite affectionate earlier. It was truly stunning to see him in such a jubilant mood.”

Keitaro felt his eyes begin to water. He bit his lip to hold back a cry of joy, knowing that his plan had worked far better than he’d hoped. 

Eduard sighed, “It’s not really our place to tell you what Taiga’s decision was, so we’ll let him tell you himself. But, depending on what he says… y-you better take care of him.”

Seeing the nervousness, but care in their eyes made Keitaro’s heart leap with joy. He slowly stood up, pushing the chair back as he did. He took in a breath, and bowed deeply. 

“Thank you… for telling me all of this. I promise to take care of him, should he decide to stay.”

For the first time during that conversation, Eduard and Lee smiled at him directly.

“Good. We’ll be observing you meticulously from here on out. One slip up from you, and we’ll know!” Lee proclaimed, patting his chest proudly. 

Keitaro smiled, lifting himself up. 

“I understand. Thank you again. And… I’m sorry, again, for not consulting you before-hand. You too, Seto, Felix…”

Looking towards the back of the cabin, he noticed Felix was wiping his eyes with Seto’s shirt, moved by the conversation that had unfolded before him. Seto merely waved him off.

Without another word, Keitaro turned around and made for the door, the pressure that had built in his chest no wavering. He gave the four one last thankful look, bowing his head again, then leaving. 

Eduard and Lee looked at one another, suddenly hugging each other tightly. Eduard buried his face into Lee’s neck, a watery smile crawling on his face. 

“We might not have him all the time… b-but, it’s worth it. W-We ha-have our Taiga b-back!”

“I c-conqur!”

Seto smiled, leaning back in his bed and pulling out his ame system again, quickly wiping the tears that formed. Felix giggled at the sight, “I saw that~”

_ “Shush~” _

* * *

The activity had been drawn to a close. Aiden spoke his words of praise to the scouts over how well it had been executed, and they were dismissed for the rest of the day until dinner that evening. 

Taiga had rejoined them after finally being able to pry Eduard and Lee off of him, the two chattering to him for a solid hour as they finished their jog. He wouldn’t say it out loud, but he’d missed their calmer, less revenge filled friendship. 

But, with everything done for the say, they headed back to their cabin, eager to wash the work of the activity off of them. 

Taiga let out a yawn when he stepped in, immediately peeling off his shoes and setting them aside lazily, “I didn’t think just jogging would tire me out so much…”

Hiro snickered, “How many laps did you run? You were on the track for a while.”

The flame-haired boy shrugged, “I lost count. I was mostly listening to Eduard and Lee the whole time, so I wasn’t paying attention to how many times we crossed the line.”

“Well, that’ll do it. I wouldn’t be surprised if you ran over a mile!” Natsumi proclaimed, throwing his arms up for emphasis. 

Taiga only sighed, “Yeah… I’m just ready to wash the sweat off and take a nap…”

Keitaro had entered the cabin last, the boy having walked back to the obstacle course to try and keep his earlier conversation a secret. When he heard Taiga’s plan for the evening, he raised a brow. 

“Are you gonna pack?”

Taiga turned to him, furrowing his brows in confusion, “Pack? Pack what?”

“You’re things… to go back to your old cabin…?”

Taiga felt his heart hammer against his chest, “Are… are you, kicking me out?” 

The brunette gasped, shaking his head frantically, “N-No! I just… we saw you with Eduard and Lee and they hugged you and you seemed happy so we… I thought that…”

“I was going back?” 

Keitaro nodded sadly. 

Taiga sighed, leaning against the wall. He knew he had to give them his answer today, but he had hoped he could put it off until dinner. He’d already gotten super sappy with Eduard and Lee today, he was starting to gross himself out. 

But, there was no avoiding it now. 

He cleared his throat. 

“I thought about it a lot today. If I was to go back to my old cabin, I’m worried that Eduard and Lee will stick to me like they used to. I want them to go and find other friends besides me, and with Seto and Felix with them, they have that chance. The reason they got all mushy with me was because I did some serious reflecting over this past week and well… gave them an apology they deserved.”

The entire cabin was staring at him intently. 

He took in another shaky breath, “I’ve… I’ve also grown to like it here. The bed is much more comfortable and it’s cleaner so…”

The room went dead silent. 

Keitaro’s brain imploded on itself. His eyes went wide with shock, and he felt his heart quicken. 

“W-Wait… Taiga… a-are you gonna… st-stay?” Keitaro felt his frame begin to tremble, tears welling up in his eyes. 

Taiga rubbed his neck, “I had to make a compromise with Eduard and Lee to do so. They, along with Seto and Felix, will be joining us for dinner from now on. But, yeah… I’ve decided that I’ll-“

“KYAAAAAA!!!”

With a cry that would put Yuri to shame, Keitaro squealed at the top of his lungs and launched himself at Taiga. The other had no time to react before Keitaro had slammed into his chest, locking his arms around his torso and lifting him clean off his feet. Taiga yelped as he was spun around by the ecstatic boy, holding his head so that he wouldn’t flip over his shoulder. 

“Oh my gosh, I’m so happy you’re staying!!! I was really worried you’d be leaving and I know I said that I’d let you leave but I really, really,  _ really _ wanted you to stay because you’re one of my boys now and I care about you and oh my gosh, I’M SO HAPPY!!!”

The other four campers laughed as Keitaro spun Taiga around with glee, watching Taiga kick his legs wildly. 

“K-Keitaro! P-Put me down, you’re gonna make me sick!” He shouted, pushing against Keitaro’s face. 

Finally bringing the spinning to an end, Keitaro allowed Taiga to slip down from his grasp and back onto his feet. He clutched his chest to catch his breath while the other four surrounded them. 

“I’m really glad you’re staying, Taiga! It’d be a bit boring without you,” Natsumi patted Taiga’s shoulder, smiling brightly. Hunter nodded in agreement, coming up to the scout’s side, “Y-Yeah, it’s nice having someone who shares hobbies like mine.”

Hiro and Yoichi both looked at each other, smirking devilishly. They turned to Taiga and stared at him silently, both rolling their shoulders like a predator ready to pounce on their prey. 

Taiga looked up just a second too late, seeing the mischievous stares on their faces. 

“Don-“

The two rowdy scouts jumped forward and hoisted Taiga into the air, holding by his shoulders and lower back and prancing around the room. 

“ONE OF US!  _ ONE OF US!  _ **_ONE OF US!_ ** ”

“PUT ME DOWN, AAAAHH!”

Keitaro, Natsumi, and Hunter doubled over in laughter at the sight before them, watching Taiga twist around to start slapping the side of Yoichi’s head.

Keitaro wiped his eyes, unsure of whether the tears coming from them were ones of laughter, or joy.

He glanced up at Taiga, gestured to Hiro and Yoichi to put him down for a moment. 

When the two chanting dropped him, Keitaro raced forward and took Taiga into his arms again, burying his face into his neck. 

Taiga bit his lip, a blush dusting his face. 

He couldn’t deny the happiness he was feeling. Despite the broody side of him, for the first time since he’d been there. Once again, he felt like he was a part of something. 

The reassuring smiles from Hunter, Natsumi, Hiro, and even Yoichi were enough reformation for him.

He held up his arms…

And hugged him back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuff
> 
> This is by far the corniest chapter I’ve ever written. 
> 
> And, to the surprise of absolutely no one:
> 
> TAIGA’S GONNA STAY!!!
> 
> Yeah not a really big cliffhanger, but it was the discussions that followed that really mattered. 
> 
> So, this chapter takes a lot from the discussion Taiga has with Eduard and Lee in his route after the beach, and the one that Eduard and Lee have with Keitaro and co. I wanted to include those conversations in SS because of their importance, but I was having a bit of an issue working them into the story in a neat way. After a bit of brainstorming, I thought of altering the context just a wee bit so that it was Taiga’s decision that spurred it on. 
> 
> Eduard and Lee, of course, still have their issues with Keitaro since he took Taiga from their cabin, but the two will warm up to him over time, since Taiga seems to trust him now. Also I threw in some Seto/Felix and Eduard/Lee in there for you lovelies~
> 
> Well, I hoped you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Super cheesy and super fluffy. 
> 
> Now we can finally get to the second act of Camp Buddy: The Beach~
> 
> And I can finally make proper use of that mature rating ~~~~~~ <3
> 
> For updates on CB:Sleepsong (And other cb shenanigans and shitposting), follow me on Twitter @TiraminaFW!
> 
> NEXT TIME: 
> 
> After a rather eventful week, in the earlier hours of the morning, Yoshinori comes bursting into the cabin blaring his whistle. The whole camp is going on a trip to the beach! Tired, but excited, the boys gather their things to begin this surprise vacation. How will it go, and what shenanigans will they get into?
> 
> STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!
> 
> Let’s Make the Greatest Memories!
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


	17. Day 15: Surprise Vacation

Keitaro let out a gentle sigh in his sleep as he rolled over in bed, curling into his blanket happily. 

The sun was barely over the horizon, the first few rays peeking over the woods. With the sun not up yet, the residents of cabin one slumbered on, guaranteed at least another two to three hours of sleep. 

**_PHWEEET PHWEEET PHWEEET_ **

The sound of a whistle blaring outside pulled Keitaro from his comfortable slumber. He slowly sat up in bed, propping himself on his elbows as he rubbed his eyes groggily. 

“Ughh… what’s going on…?”

The sound of the whistle going off again rose more of the scouts, many groans of discomfort sounding off. 

“...Could someone turn that off please?” Hiro rolled over and pulled his blanket over his head, covering his ears to try and block the sound out. Hunter moved and let out a tired groan, but it didn’t;t seem like he woke completely. 

Keitaro sat up completely when the whistle went off again, his attention stirred at how frantic it sounded, “Oh no… is there an emergency?”

Natsumi sat up tiredly, rubbing his eyes clean of sleep, “I believe that’s Scoutmaster Yoshi waking everyone up.”

“Well can he stop waking us up… the fucking sun isn’t up yet…” Taiga groaned from his bunk, throwing his blanket over his head much like Hiro had in attempts to drown out the noise. 

Keitaro kicked his blanket off, setting his feet down on the floor, “Ah, Natsumi! Why would Scoutmaster Yoshi wake us all up this early?”

Natsumi glanced outside, noticing the lack of sunlight. He then lifted his wrist to glance at his watch, furrowing his brows when he read the time. 

04:55 

“Hmmm… I’m not quite sure. This is definitely pretty unusual.” He rubbed his chin in thought, tenderly massaging the back of his neck. 

Before the conversation could continue, a sudden flash of light blinded all of them. Keitaro cried out in pain and quickly covered his eyes, shielding them from the light of the cabin turning on. 

Another blare of the whistle, this time inside the cabin. 

“Attention! Wake up, everyone! Wake up!!”

Yoshi barreled into the cabin, blowing his whistle as loudly as he could while yelling. The screaming of the whistle and Yoshi’s booming voice was the final straw that rose the last of the scouts up from bed. 

“GOD DAMN IT! WOULD YOU SHUT THE HELL UP?!”

Yoichi jumped from bed, grabbing his pillow and chucking it across the room straight at Yoshi, who swiftly dodged it without problem. 

Hunter jumped up with a yelp, the whistle scaring him awake fully. Taiga jumped as well, nearly falling off his bunk if it hadn’t been for Keitaro grabbing his waist to catch him. 

“What the fuck, Yoshi!?” He snapped, scrambling back into his bed angrily. But Yoshi didn’t seem to hear him. 

“Good! Everyone’s awake now! I’d like you all to pack your bags! We’ll all be going on a trip! Be finished preparing your things within ten minutes! Don’t forget to pack extra clothes and your swimwear! I will be waiting for all of you outside!”

Without giving anyone a chance to respond, Yoshi spun on his heel and waltzed out, blowing his whistle as he did. 

Hiro rolled onto his back, rubbing his eyes wearily, “Pack what now…?”

Hunter had sat up and moved his legs over the bed, but his eyes were closed, more asleep than he was awake.

Natsumi immediately hopped off his bed at hearing the time limit, rushing over to the entrance of the bathroom, “Guys, let’s go start preparing! We don’t have much time left!”

Yoichi groaned, flopping back onto his bed and rolling himself into his blanket, “Screw this, I’m going back to sleep…”

Keitaro let out a gentle yawn, slowly raising himself from his bed. He walked over to Yoichi’s bunk, lightly tugging on the violettes blanket, “Yoichi, you can’t be left alone here… come on, up, up, please~”

Keitaro’s gentle purrs made Yoichi pop an eye open, seeing the brunette smiling brightly at him, trying to look as cute as possible to get him out of bed. 

A dark blush raced across the large scouts cheeks. He rolled over and sat up suddenly, Keitaro jumped back to avoid getting headbutted. 

“FINE! FINE! You people just don’t know when to give up!” 

He angrily threw himself out of his bunk, tossing his blanket aside haphazardly. 

Hunter had finally seemed to gain some semblance of consciousness, rubbing his eyes as he walked over to Natsumi, gently grabbing his arm to hang on to it, “Where are we going, Natsumi? I don’t know what exactly I should pack.”

Natsumi hummed, “Scoutmaster Yoshi told us to pack extra clothing. We must be going on another camping trip. I’m really not sure where, but I’m sure they’ll tell us in the assembly!”

“How am I supposed to prepare my things if I don’t even know where I’ll be going?!” Yoichi snapped, throwing his arms up. 

Across the room, Taiga had lowered himself down from his bunk. He touched down onto the wooden floor and stretched his back out, letting out a long yawn. 

“Well… I did hear Yoshi say swimwear too. Maybe it’s somewhere water based? Like the lake?” He suggested, rubbing his neck as he sombered across the room and towards the bathroom. 

Yoichi only sighed at the theory, making Natsumi skip over to him with a smile, “Don’t worry, Yoichi! I can help you prepare your things if you’re still feeling sleepy!”

The violette swatted away the tall scout’s advances, spinning on his heel. 

“I don’t need your help, Mr. Perfect! I can take care of myself!” He stomped away, moving into the bathroom with a huff. 

Natsumi sighed, turning to the small blonde still clinging to his arm. He gently eclipsed his small hand with his own, smiling sweetly, “How about you, Hunter? Need my help?”

Hunter nodded, “Yes, please…”

Natsumi smiled, turning to face Keitaro briefly, “I’ll leave Hiro to you then, Keitaro! I think he’s still half-asleep! Haha!”

The two walked away, leaving Keitaro alone with Hiro, who was still laying on his side, eye’s closed. 

Keitaro sighed, cracking a half-smile at his best friend's state. He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed, the mattress caving under his weight. 

“Hiro?” 

The boy only sighed in his sleep. 

Keitaro reached down and gently grabbed Hiro’s shoulder, shaking it lightly, “Wake up, Hiro. It’s time to go! We’re going on a trip!”

Hiro’s eyes fluttered open barely, his amber eyes looking up groggily. When he saw Keitaro staring down at him with a smile on his face, he sighed deeply. 

“I wanna sleep more, Keitaro… Come here, sleep beside me…” He curled around Keitaro’s waist like a snake, gently wrapping his arms around the brunette’s torso. 

Keitaro only smiled, reaching down to lovingly pat Hiro’s head, “Aww… you must be really tired from yesterday, huh?”

Hiro nodded with a pout. 

“I’ll go pack your things for you. But you have to promise me you’ll wake up and get dressed, okay?” 

The boy sighed again, puffing out his lips like a duck. But when he blinked an eye open and saw Keitaro’s shining eyes beaming down at him, he huffed in defeat. 

“Okay, Keitaro…”

Smiling brightly, Keitaro patted his cheek and stood back up, watching Hiro roll around in bed for a few seconds. 

He skipped off into the bathroom, going to get dressed with the rest of his cabin.

* * *

The sun was only halfway over the horizon. Most of the sky was still a dark blue, with the sky near the sun a purplish-pink. 

The scouts were all gathered in their respective cabins, huddled into their groups. 

Many were yawning with tiredness at the early hour they’d been woken up at, rubbing eyes and checking watches. What on earth was going on to the point they needed to be woken up at the crack of dawn?

“Alright! Is everybody here?” 

The sound of Yoshi’s booming voice awoke a few of the scouts from their sleepy trance. A few murmurs of confirmation rolled over the crowd, making the scoutmasters all smile sympathetically at their tired scouts. 

“We’re sorry we had to wake up all of you this early!” Yuri apologized, clapping her hands together. 

After two of them spoke, Aiden was the last to finish them off. He smiled brightly and pumped his fists into the air energetically, “Don’t worry, guys! It’ll all be worth it since we’re going to the  _ beach! _ ”

A flurry of gasps echoed in the morning air. 

Keitaro’s jaw dropped, his emerald eyes going wide with disbelief, “Wow!  _ The beach!? _ ”

Hiro began jumping up and down, pumping his fists, “That sounds exciting! It’s been so long since we last went to the ocean, Keitaro!”

Taiga smirked, placing his hands on his hips at the announcement, “Finally, an activity that’s not completely lame.”

Yoichi punched the redhead’s shoulder in agreement. 

Natsumi stepped up a bit, smiling at the announcement, but holding up a hand, “Don’t get too excited, you guys! I bet we’ll be going there for an activity, not for leisure.”

Yoichi groaned, crossing his arms, “There you go again, Mr. Perfect. Could you stop being a killjoy just for once?”

Hunter looked down at the bag at his feet, smiling gently, “No wonder they asked us to bring our swimwear.”

Keitaro had lost all muscle control and was bouncing in circles around his cabin-mates, doing his best to hold back squealing at the top of his lungs, “I’m so excited! Imagine all the activities we can do there!”

The other five laughed at Keitaro’s unashamed zeal. Many of the other groups were all chatting excitedly at the sound of a beach trip, making Yoshi smile pridefully. 

“I’m glad to hear that all of you are pumped up for this! The beach is exclusively reserved for us for a couple days! Isn’t that exciting!?”

Yuri sighed gleefully, folding her hands together in front of her, “I know  _ I’m _ excited! I’ll get to see all of you half na-“

Yoshi threw his hand over Yuri’s mouth. 

“Anyway! This is all thanks to our camp president, Sir Goro for arranging this trip with his business partner!” Yoshi continued, derailing Yuri’s potential spiral. 

Taiga came up behind Keitaro,  _ “You think that’s what they’ve been so busy with this past week?” _

_ “Maybe…” _

“Oh! Speaking of which, is Gramps going to come along?” Aiden asked, glancing over at Yoshi. 

“Yes. ‘Gramps’ is indeed going to come along.”

The whole clearing froze at the sound of Goro’s voice. The all turned their gazes to see the large man walk into the small ring of scoutmasters, fully dressed in the Camp Buddy uniform. He let out a frustrated huff when he came to a stop. 

“I was just having a hard time gearing up in this uniform… it’s been quite a while.”

Yuri jumped to her dad’s side, grabbing his arm to give him a side hug, “Wow! It’s been a while since I last saw you wear that uniform, Dad!”

“You look good in it, sir!” Yoshi smiled, trying to help improve his boss's mood. 

Goro cleared his throat awkwardly. 

“Yeah! You look a lot less scary this way, Gramps-“

“ANYWAY!”

Goro brought Aiden to halt, raising his voice to draw the attention of everyone around him. 

“I want you all to listen! When we arrive at our destination, the beach will be clean, and we will leave with it clean. No gadgets are allowed, no loitering, no staying up any later than 20:00, no wandering off too far, no-“

“ _ Dad _ .”

Yuri gently hissed to get his attention, “You’re being way too strict… we already talk about this.” 

Goro sighed, “Fine… Yoshinori, carry on.”

Yoshi snapped to attention, “R-Right!”

He cleared his throat, “So, all of us are going to head towards the beach by foot! I must warn that it won’t be a walk in the park! We’ll be passing through the forest than through the fields! No one should separate from the group for any reason! I will be keeping an eye on each and every one of you! Is that clear?!”

A flurry of affirmations. 

“Good! We’ll be embarking now! Follow my lead!”

Yoshi turned around, pointing in the direction of the pathway. He took one step forward, and the rest of the camp followed.

* * *

Twenty minutes had passed since they started their trek towards the beach. 

Keitaro was ahead of the pack, holding his camera up excitedly as he took pictures of the surrounding nature. He skipped along the path happily, humming to himself. 

“Keitaro, don’t go too far ahead of us now!” Natsumi called after him, making Keitaro skip to a stop, turning around to wait for them. 

“Sorry! I’m just super excited to go to the beach! It’s been at least three years since I last went!” 

Yoichi’s eyes widened, “Three years? Why so long?” 

Keitaro shrugged, “Well, I graduated high school in that time, then went into college right after, so I’ve been kinda… buried in school work. Also, I swore off the beach for a while after my last trip consisted of just me and my sister… with her chucking me into the water at every given opportunity.” 

Taiga snorted, “My mom does that to me. She also makes announcements like she’s some kinda jousting pro when she does it too.”

Hunter smiled, turning to Keitaro. He opened his mouth to speak, but something popped into his head when he did. He gasped. 

“Oh! Keitaro!” 

“Hmm?” He turned around to face Hunter. 

“I just realized we talk about your sister all the time, but we’ve never asked what her  _ name _ is.”

Natsumi gasped, “Oh my goodness, you’re right! I’ve been meaning to ask what her name was but we’ve always been too busy!” 

Keitaro chuckled, shaking his head at their panic, “Hehehe, it’s okay guys, no harm done. It  _ has  _ been a bit wild this past week. My sister’s name is Kida; Kida Nagame.”

Natsumi smiled, “Kida, that’s a nice name. I know we’ve asked a lot about her, but what’s she like?” 

Keitaro hummed, rubbing his chin as he thought for the right words to describe his sister with, “Well… I’d say… caring, sweet, and supportive. But also wild, a gossiper, and the biggest flirt I think I’ve ever met.”

Hiro snorted. 

“Flirt?” Yoichi rose a brow, stepping over a rock in his path. Keitaro nodded, “Yeah, flirt. She hits on every gosh darn girl she meets. I feel bad for all her female customers… they get discounts a lot but at the same time they have to deal with Kida’s cheesy old school pick up lines…”

“What kind of pick up lines does she use?” 

“Ugghhh… I don’t even wanna talk about it…”

Taiga cocked a brow, “That bad?” 

The brunette sighed, “Yeah. One time, one of her customers slipped on the wet floor and dropped their coffee. Kida was able to catch them, but she just  _ had _ to throw in a pick up line by saying ‘I know I’m charming, but you don’t have to  _ fall _ for me~’...”

A few crickets buzzed, despite the sun overhead. 

“Oh my  _ god _ …” Yoichi facepalmed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Hunter and Natsumi just laughed at the story, and Taiga shook his head, “Wow…”

Hiro nodded, “Yep. Imagine  _ being _ there. I was at their cafe that day and happened to witness it. When Miss Kida said that, I’m pretty sure I cringed into my lower intestines.”’

Taiga snorted, “Hehe, well, overall your sister sounds fun.”

Keitaro nodded, “Yeah, she’s super fun when she wants to be. And really protective too. Well, her protectiveness stems from our early childhood.”

“Huh? What happened in your early childhood?” Hunter asked, raising a slim brow. 

The boy’s eyes fell onto the ground, and he heaved a sigh. 

“Well, we had government assistance for a reason. My sister was the one who had to go through all the legal trouble to get it. But… I’d rather not go into exactly  _ why _ we had to do it. It’s a bit of a… family history issue…” 

The boys went silent at Keitaro’s sudden change in tone. His eyes looked distant and sad, like something about this “event” was haunting him. But his firm tone kept them from pressing the matter, despite their own personal curiosity.

Keitaro shook his head, looking over his shoulder to smile at them brightly, “But, hey! No need dwelling too much on that. Kida always tells me: ‘Never let your past drag you down! If it tries, slug it and show it who’s boss!’” 

Taiga chuckled, “There’s a philosophy I can get behind~” 

Keitaro’s smile brightened, “Hehehe~. Well, let’s catch up with the other groups, I don't want us getting left behind again!” 

He skipped off without another word, the other five jogging to keep up with him as they moved along the path once again in relative silence.

* * *

Another hour had passed of hard hiking. They had finally moved through the forest and into the wide, open field. Once all groups had made their way out of the wood, Yoshi, who was at the head of the pack, turned around and held up his hand, blowing his whistle. 

“Alright, everyone! We’re going to be taking a short break! We’re halfway to our destination! Please enjoy the snacks Sir Aiden has prepped for all of you! Make sure to replenish your energy! We’ll be continuing our trek in about fifteen minutes!”

Dismissing the scouts, all the group found spots in the field to sit down, relaxing their legs after over an hour and a half of walking. 

“Whew… my legs are killing me!” Yoichi flopped onto his back, spreading out in the grass with a sigh. Hiro sat down next to him, sighing with relief as the weight was finally lifted off his legs. 

“Well, Scoutmaster Yoshi says we’re only halfway there, so we must have another hour or so to go.” Natsumi settled down next to Hiro, patting the space next to him for Hunter to sit. 

Taiga and Keitaro were the last ones to catch up, the redhead immediately dropping to his rear dramatically, “Oh my god… I hate all this walking!” 

Keitaro chuckled, reaching out to pat his head. 

“Well, since I’m still up, I’ll go get us some snacks and drinks!”

“Oh, I can help you!” Natsumi tried to stand up again, but Keitaro waved him off, “No, it’s alright. I can carry a few water bottles and sandwiches. I’ll be right back.”

Before anyone could try and follow him, the brunette scout skipped away, waving down Aiden. 

Hiro sighed, “There he goes again, not resting in order to take care of others.”

Hunter looked over at the scout, “What do you mean?” 

“Keitaro always puts others before himself. It’s a habit of his that he’s had since I met him. Never once have I seen that boy doing anything for himself. Even on days were he physically can’t afford to help anyone, he’d move mountains to be there. Heck, once he got a cold for frog-hunting out in the rain, then the next day, he tried to come to my house and help me with my homework!”

Natsumi smiled, “That kinda sounds a bit like me in a way, but I’m not sure it’s a good thing.”

Hiro sighed, “Yeah. It got  _ really  _ bad after third grade. I remember him and Miss Kida living at our house for a few months after the school year started. I’m not sure why they did. My mom’s pretty hush about it, and Miss Kida told me to never, ever,  _ ever _ ask Keitaro why.” 

Taiga rose a brow, leaning on his arm, “What? Why should she tell you to do that.”

Hiro furrowed his brows, looking up to see if Keitaro was coming back. When he saw him talking to Aiden and Yoshi, he leaned down to continue. 

“I don’t know any details. All I know is... something  _ really bad _ happened when we were in third grade. Keitaro was silent for at least four months when he was living with us. Miss Kida was always at the town courthouse, Mom was there with her, and my aunt was looking after Keitaro and I. No matter how hard I tried, I could never get him to smile, laugh, much less  _ talk _ ,” He whispered, his eyes falling at the memory. 

“What the hell… that doesn’t seem like Frogboy at all!” Yoichi hissed, his eyes wide with concern. Hiro nodded sadly. 

“Yeah. After about five months, Miss Kida and Keitaro moved out and into a new home. I don’t know anything about their parents either. I know Keitaro’s mom passed away, but… his father is an enigma.”

Taiga’s eyes widened, “A few days ago, Keitaro told me that he can’t talk about his dad. Or, that he just can’t bring himself to do it…”

Hiro nodded, “I’m pretty sure he’s the root of it all. Every time I so much as  _ mention _ him, Keitaro goes all silent and scared on me. Sometimes, he even starts crying. But… now that you know, you guys have to do the same! Please don’t ask Keitaro about his dad, he’ll tell us when he’s ready… whenever that might be.”

They all nodded. 

“Ummm…”

The five yelped at the sound of Keitaro’s voice, whirling around to see him holding a bunch of water bottles and snacks, his brow raised with concern. 

“Am I interrupting a secret meeting or something?”

“No, no, we were just talking about what kind of activities we might have at the beach! Right guys?” Hiro smiled at the other four, making them all nod hastily. 

Keitaro eyed them suspiciously, noticing the tense atmosphere around them. But, when they all went and focused on their food, discussing these “activities” they were talking about, Keitaro let it go, not wanting to ruin their break. 

They ate their snacks in relative silence, and after fifteen minutes, Yoshi brought them back up and marched on to their final destination.

* * *

Another hour of walking left the scouts tired, ready to call it a day. The forest seemed to keep going no matter how far they went, many considering the possibility of it going on forever. 

Yoshi glanced over his shoulder, seeing many of the scouts dragging their feet. Instead of feeling nervous at their lack of enthusiasm, he instead smiled keenly. A bright glow shone ahead of them, and he picked up his pace a bit with Aiden and Yuri in tow. 

Keitaro and his group walked in silence, seeing Yoshinori jump forward enthusiastically. The density of the trees suddenly thinned, becoming more and more open. 

And then, after a minute or two, the sun was beaming overhead. 

Everyone gasped at the sight before them. 

They finally arrived at the seaside. And it was  _ breathtaking! _

The shining blue ocean rolled across the golden shore in gentle waves, the sound echoing through the air proudly. Palm trees lined the sandy beach, different fruits hanging from their branches. Smooth rocks decorated the edges of the shore, victim to the waves that crashed over them. 

And with little to no clouds overhead, the sun reflected off the water like a glimmering diamond. 

Yoshinori spun on his heel, casting his arms wide while smiling brightly. 

“Attention, scouts! We have officially reached our destination!”

The scouts all cheered happily, many bouncing with excitement. Aiden turned around to look at the ocean again, “Awesome! It’s just how I imagined it would be!”

“Isn’t this place truly marvelous?!” Yuri cried, clasping her hands together. 

Keitaro and his group were left nearly speechless at the sight before them. Keitaro’s eyes were blown wide with his jaw dropped as he stared at the scene before them. 

“This place is AMAZING!!! I need to take a picture!!!” Keitaro suddenly squealed and threw his camera up, snapping a photo of the shore. When the picture was printed, he covered the image to protect it from the sun as the photo faded in. When the image appeared, he held it up with a smile, “What a good shot!”

Hiro chuckled, “Don’t take too many pictures, Keitaro! You don’t wanna run out of film!”

Natsumi nodded in agreement, “Yeah! I’m sure there are plenty of amazing things you’ll get to take pictures of!”

While they talked, Hunter’s attention was focused solely on the beach, his eyes glimmering with wonder. 

“This is my first time going to an actual beach…” He sighed, smiling at the beauty of the place. 

Yoichi’s jaw dropped at his statement, however, “Seriously, Twinkerbell? Just what kind of godforsaken place did you come from? Did your parents trap you in the basement all these years or something?”

Hunter curled back at the statement, but Natsumi was quick to pop Yoichi across the back of the head, frowning with disappointment, “Don’t be mean to Hunter, Yoichi!”

“Ugh! He was asking for it!”

Taiga snickered at their banter, his eyes drawn to the shore. The reserved scout cracked a smile, taking in a breath of the fresh, salty sea air, “Man… I always loved that ocean smell…”

Keitaro skipped up next to him, grabbing his arm and shaking it excitedly, “Me too! Ohhhh, guys! I can’t wait to swim!!!”

“I know, right!” 

The six turned at the sound of a new voice. They saw Seto and Felix approaching them, Seto having a skip in his step as he went. 

“I never thought they’d bring us to an actual beach!” He finished, skidding to stop in front of them. 

“Oh hey, guys!” Keitaro greeted, giving them a happy wave. 

Natsumi smiled at their arrival, “All that walking sure paid off, huh?”

Seto nodded, but Felix only sighed, leaning into Seto’s side to prop himself up, “I can’t feel my legs anymore… I wish they’d provide us a cottage to stay in for a while, or maybe even a villa!”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Don’t be stupid! We’re campers! Not tourists!”

Felix rose a confused brow, “But isn’t this a resort?”

Seto turned around and shook his head, giving his small partner a pat on the head, “This is just a regular seaside, Felix. Don’t expect civilization here.”

The little scout sighed heavily, his shoulders slumping, “Aww… I wanna go home… it’s so hot here… I miss my air-conditioning…”

Yoichi grabbed a fistful of his hair, groaning with annoyance,  _ “Oh my god _ , can somebody shut Snowball up? He sounds like a spoiled brat!”

But Felix’s complaints only continued. 

“If only I knew it would be this hot out here, I would’ve brought my sunblock with me…”

“WOULD YOU STOP COMPLAI-Mmngkk!!”

Yoichi looked borderline ready to toss the small boy, but Hiro and Taiga both rushed to his sides and threw their hands over his mouth, pulling the wild man back before he could pounce. 

“Don’t listen to him, Felix! He’s just cranky because he didn’t get enough sleep! Isn’t that right, Wolfboy?” Hiro cooed, ruffling Yoichi’s hair as Taiga sniggered off to the side. 

“GAH! Let go of me!” Yoichi squirmed in their grasp, but the two combined seemed to be enough to keep Yoichi restrained for a little bit. 

Seto laughed at the display, “You two are funny!”

Hunter sighed, rubbing his neck, “They’re always like that…”

Hiro grinned, patting Yoichi’s head like he was a dog, “That’s a good Wolfboy! Now sit!”

Yoichi snarled, barring his teeth at Hiro angrily, “Shut up, Torch-head, or I’ll buy you six feet underground!”

“Try it then~”

Taiga let Yoichi go, stepping back to give the two some space, “I’m tapping out of this one.”

Keitaro chuckled, stepping up to squeeze himself in-between the two, “Calm down, boys. We’re here to have fun together!”

At Keitaro’s soft, but stern tone, the two rowdy scouts separated. But instead of pouting like usual, Hiro began bouncing on his toes, staring at the water excitedly, “Oh yeah! What are we waiting for? Let’s go swim!”

Before he could tear off, Natsumi quickly grabbed the end of his bandana, “Not so fast, Hiro. We’re here to do some serious activity, remember? The scoutmasters haven’t given us any new orders yet. We’ll still have to set up a camp before we take dip.”

“LISTEN! ALL OF YOU!”

The group of scouts snapped to attention at Goro’s harsh command. They all turned to the large man, who cleared his throat and placed his hands on his hips sternly, assuredly preparing for a lecture. 

“I want all of you to be reminded that this place is privately owned! So that means we’re going to take care of it! I don’t want to see any litter scattered around! Remember that no one should wander off away from our campsite! The waters may look shallow and calm, but extra precautions must be observed! No swimming beyond thirty meters away from the shorelines! Night swimming is most  _ definitely _ not allowed! And-“

“ _ Dad! _ Let the campers have fun!” Yuri patted her dad's arm, making Goro sigh, but withdraw to let his daughter speak. 

“We’re glad to announce to all of you that there will be no activity for this trip!” She cried, throwing her arms into the air. 

Gasps rolled across the scouts. 

“This is a full, fun-only vacation that we, your scoutmasters, have prepared for all of you! Since you’ve all shown true sportsmanship and unity through our last major activity, we’ve decided to give all of you this vacation!” Yoshi finished, the scouts whooping and hollering with glee. 

Aiden suddenly growled, scratching his head, “GAH! I can’t wait any longer! Imma go ahead and strip off now! I wanna be the first one to take a dip!”

Upon hearing Aiden’s proclamation, Yuri spun on her heel, her pupils dilated, “YES! GO AHEAD, AIDEN! PLEASE!!!”

Yoshi smiled nervously at the two, “Aren’t you two far more excited than the campers?”

Yuri threw her hands to her cheeks with a squeal, “How can I not be?! I can already imagine all the boys in their skimpy swimsuits!”

While Yoshi sighed, Aiden turned to Yuri, “C’mon, Yuri! Let’s get changed!”

Goro scoffed, taking a step forward to get in-between the two, “Wait! You can’t change clothes with my daughter! What are you thinking?!”

Aiden took a step back, holding his hands up in surrender, “Fine, fine… you don’t have to yell… sheesh.”

Aiden turned and left the area, keeping his hands up as he walked away. Yuri, however, wasn’t about to give up on the offer, “NO, AIDEN! WAIT FOR ME! I WANNA SEE!!!”

“W-Wait! Who will help me with setting up the ten-“ Yoshi tried to stop Yuri, but the woman sped off, chasing after Aiden. Yoshi’s protest died on his tongue the moment they were out of sight. 

Goro sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Those two still act like children…. Yoshinori. I’ll help you with setting up the tents.”

Yoshi’s eyes widened at the offer, but he quickly shook his head and bowed, “A-Alright, sir! I appreciate the help!”

He cleared his throat and turned back to the scouts. 

“As I was saying! All of you may change into your swimwear now and enjoy the place! I will set up a spot where you can leave all your belongings! That will be all for now! Dismissed!”

The scouts all scattered like mice, tearing across the sand while cheering loudly. 

Keitaro and his group were the only ones to remain still, stunned at the sudden turn of events. 

“I can’t believe it! This was a surprise vacation all along?!” Keitaro cried, his jaw dropped. 

Yoichi laughed loudly, pointing accusingly at Natsumi, “HA! In your face, Mr. Perfect!”

Natsumi was stunned, not even noticing Yoichi’s loud jab at him, “Th-This has never happened before!”

Hunter came up and took Natsumi by the arm, smiling brightly, “The scoutmasters must have really recognized our efforts during the sportsfest.”

Taiga snorted, rubbing the back of his head, “Well that’s a first. But hey, free vaca, so who am I to complain?”

Hunter giggled, “And it’s all thanks to you, Keitaro.”

The brunette blushed darkly, tugging on the strap of his camera embarrassingly, “I-I already told you guys, we all did this together!”

Hiro jumped up to hug Keitaro tightly, making the boy in question squeak at the affection. 

“So, this was the prize after all! In the end, everyone gets to be the winner!”

Natsumi opened his mouth to speak, but was swiftly interrupted by Yoichi, “Enough with the small talk! Let’s go have some fun!”

Keitaro nodded, “Alright! Let’s go get changed then!”

“DYNAMITE! TORCH-HEAD! Last one to the changing room gets punched!!!” Yoichi screeched, tearing off through the sand. Taiga sneered, rolling his shoulders, “Alright! I’ve been waiting to punch you!”

He took after Yoichi, Hiro scrambling to start running, “H-Hey! You two got a head start!”

* * *

“Whew, there we go!”

Keitaro stepped out of one of the dressing rooms and back into the sunlight. He was wearing a simple pair of greens trunks with a pair of frog goggles to match. 

He let out a sigh of delight as his toes sunk into the sand, warmed by the sun overhead. 

“It’s been a while since I’ve worn these shorts! I never had the chance to go to the beach in the past couple of years. It’s nice to smell the sea breeze again! I just hope I can enjoy this day with-“

“WOOHOO! Who’s ready to swim!?” 

“H-Hey-calm down, Wolfboy! You’re gonna knock someone over!” 

“G-Guys, calm down now…”

Keitaro smiled and turned around at the sound of his cabin-mates voices. He opened his mouth to speak, wanting to welcome them to his side…

But his voice died in his throat, his mouth went completely dry, and something twitched in his shorts. 

The sight before him was  _ spectacular _ . All of his boys had left their respective dressing room almost simultaneously, not giving him any time to take them in one at a time. 

He was blessed with the sight of the boys in their swimsuits, making something in his gut stir. 

Hiro was wearing a black and orange pair of trunks, but had kept his bandana from his uniform on. The only difference being it was now twisted around and facing the front, showing off his boyish charm. 

Hunter was a bit tucked away, but Keitaro didn’t have to move much to see him. He had on a small pair of yellow shorts, defining his smooth butt. He was also wearing a beach shirt to cover his shoulders, probably to help protect him from the sun due to his fair skin. 

Natsumi’s suit looked professional. It was tight to his tights and black and blue in color. He had a set of bright, orange goggles strapped to his head, and he still kept his water-proof watch on his wrist. Keitaro believed that kind of swimsuit was called… jammers? 

While those three had a bit covered, Yoichi and Taiga were  _ anything _ but shy with their suits, if you could even call them that. 

Yoichi’s trunks were thin, and a bit small. The design was simple with a blank and white checkered helm, while the rest was violet. The small suit wasn’t even enough to cover everything. Keitaro had to swallow quickly to prevent himself from drooling at the sight of Yoichi's bush peeking out from the top of his trunks. 

Taiga’s trunks were _flashy_. Extremely thin and tight to his skin like Yoichi’s, but with a vibrant, tiger skin design. He had also adorned himself with some matching accessories, tying a tiger striped bandana to his left arm with two necklaces to match; a tiger-tooth necklace, and the second, smaller one being made of some kind of small rocks. 

Keitaro had gone completely rigid, unable to move from the place where he was rooted. His trunks were starting to feel too tight on him- 

“Hey, Keitaro!” 

When Hiro called out to him, Keitaro mentally slapped himself in the face, shaking his head to wake him from his trance. 

“U-Uh, hey guys!” 

The five all walked up to him, not noticing how quickly Keitaro’s eyes were darting between them. 

“Sorry about that, did you wait too long?” Natsumi asked, his brows furrowed with concern. 

“N-No! I didn’t, I just got out here too!” He waved his hands around frantically, trying to calm his racing heart. 

“Well, that’s good. Hiro and Yoichi started bickering when we got there and I had to help Hunter with his sunscreen. Not sure what Taiga was doing though…” Natsumi explained, glancing over at the redhead, who held up his arm to show his accessories. 

Yoichi scoffed, “Hey, it ain’t my fault Torch-head lost the race and ran away when I tried to punch him!” 

Hiro stuck his tongue out. 

Keitaro giggled, shaking his head. Finally being able to calm his mind ( _ and his loins _ ), he turned around to face the water, “I’m just really excited to swim!”

Hiro jumped forward, leaping onto Keitaro’s back and hugging him, “Me too! It’ll be like old times, back when we were kids, huh?” 

Aaaand, calm gone. 

With Hiro’s bare chest against his back, Keitaro’s face erupted. His cheeks could put a fire engine to shame, and he quickly covered his face to shield his embarrassment. 

Hunter didn’t help either when he walked up to Keitaro and grabbed his arm, “I don’t swim often, but I’m excited too!”

_ Holyshitholyshitholyshitholyshit- _

Keitaro tried to take deep breaths, his heart beating against his ribcage like a sledgehammer. 

“Keitaro? Are you okay?” Natsumi walked around to see Keitaro’s darkened face, holding a hand to his forehead to check for a fever. 

Yoichi snorted, walking around and ducking down to face Keitaro, who was looking at the ground. 

“Eh, he’s just having a ‘shower moment’ again. Do you need some privacy~?” 

“Y-YOICHI!?” 

Keitaro screeched with embarrassment and his face only turned redder, throwing his hands over his eyes. 

Taiga cocked a brow, “Shower moment? What’s that?”

“NOTHING! THAT’S WHAT IT IS!”

Before Yoichi could respond, Keitaro slapped his hand over his mouth, shouting loudly to try and drop the subject. But the group only snickered at his embarrassment. 

“Awww, don’t be embarrassed, Keitaro! Everyone does it every once in a while. We don’t blame you either, who  _ couldn’t _ with all of us?” Hiro cooed, squeezing Keitaro a bit more. 

“ _ SHUSH!” _

Taiga stared at them with confusion. While Keitaro was distracted, Yoichi walked over and leaned towards his ear, explaining the joke. Keitaro turned around with the violette disappeared, only to see him whispering to Taiga and making a “jacking off” motion with his hands. 

Taiga snorted. 

“Pfft-WOW! No shame, huh!?” He shouted, losing his composure and descending into fits of laughter. 

Keitaro shook his head, “I didn’t do that in shower!!!” 

He was of course lying, but he was unable to admit it, despite being caught somehow. 

Taiga snorted, “So tell, how long did it take you~”

“TAI-“

“KYAAAAAAAA!!!”

A loud scream cut him off, and six whirled around to see Yuri standing only a meter away from them. Keitaro yelped in fright, the lady appearing behind him like a witch of some kind. 

“Ms. Yuri…?” Natsumi lifted his hand a bit with worry, noticing her eyes had glazed over completely. 

“I can’t believe my eyes! Am I dead?! Is this heaven?! So many delicious boys served right in front of me!”

“D-Delicious…?” Hunter stepped behind Yoichi, trying to hide from the crazed woman. 

Yoichi sighed, “Am I seriously gonna be part of this mess?”

“We all know where this is going…” Hiro closed his eyes in defeat, seemingly subjecting himself to whatever was about to happen next. 

“So much skin glistening under the hot summer sun! This is truly my favorite season! I’m in paradise!!!”

Keitaro smiled nervously, reached out to try and calm her, “Calm down, Ms. Yuri. You might pass out again…”

But his reach only served as an invitation to be her first victim. Yuri suddenly seized Keitaro’s hands and pulled him into her chest, squeezing the boy tightly. 

“KYAAA!! Cutie Keitaro!! You’re two-HUNDRED times cuter in those shorts! You and Hiro almost have the same body! You must really be made for each other!!!”

“M-Ms. Yuri!” Hiro flushed at Yuri’s speal, stepping back a bit. Keitaro lifted his hand, patting her arm a bit when his face began to turn blue, “M-Ms. Yuri… c-can’t… b-b-breathe-!”

She suddenly let him go, the brunette gasping for air upon his release. Taiga stepped forward to try and catch him when Keitaro swayed a bit, but Yuri only stepped up and grabbed his shoulders. 

“Oh my GOODNESS! My dear Taiga, you just  _ drip _ with power in your swimsuit! I didn’t think a more tsundere boy like you would show himself so willingly! You look so FIERCE, I JUST CAN’T!”

Taiga reeled back, pulling against her hands, “O-Oi! Unhand me!” 

His words fell on deaf ears, but Yuri had finished with him and turned around to face Natsumi, “Fwah! My dear Natsumi! You’ve really grown up to have such a manly body! A brilliant product of puberty! Those broad shoulders are so hot!! It totally gives you the perfect seme, senpai vibe!”

Unsure of what she was saying, Natsumi cracked a smile, “Thank you, Ms. Yuri.” He leaned down towards Hunter,  _ “Hunter, what’s a seme?” _

The blonde blushed darkly, “ _ Y-You don’t need to know that, Natsumi…” _

Despite hiding behind Yoichi, Yuri turned her attention to Hunter, who squeaked in fright. 

“On the other hand, Hunter’s body totally screams, ‘I’m an uke! Please be gentle with me!!!’ How can a petite body have such plump and bouncy buns?! You’re definitely asking for ‘it’, my little Hunter!”

He shifted away and buried himself into Natsumi’s side, “Natsumi… I’m scared…”

Yuri then rounded on Yoichi, who flinched in response. 

“And last but not least… our virile beast boy! I have one word for you! T. H. I. C. C! I can’t help but get seduced by your rock-hard abs, biceps, thighs, calves, KYAAAAAA! Everything is covered with thick muscles!!! And that package! OH MY GOD! I don’t think it can breathe, Yoichi! Even your fluffy bush is peeking out, desperately crying for help! Such asphyxiation must be relieved immediately! Let me come to your aid as your caring scoutmaster!”

Yuri suddenly pulled Yoichi to her, hugging the boy tightly. Yoichi screeched with anger, kicking his legs about to try and break free, “GWAAAHH!!! Get off me, crazy lady!!!”

“Everyone! Quick! Touch his abs and see if he’s ticklish!”

“LET GO OF ME!!! ARGH!! Why is this woman so strong!?!?”

Keitaro sighed, cracking his knuckles to prepare and peel his scoutmaster off of the large scout-

“Y-YURI?! What are you doing!?” 

Thankfully, Keitaro withdrew his fists when he heard and saw Yoshi jogging over quickly when he heard the commotion. 

Yuri’s head snapped up, but instead of calming her down like it normally did, she only seemed to spiral even further upon seeing him. 

Yoshi was no longer in uniform and in a swimsuit of his own. Basic in design, colored black and yellow with a caution sign on the helm. It gave off a construction worker vibe. 

Yuri released Yoichi, who scampered away and hid behind Keitaro, and threw herself at Yoshi, “WAH! D-Daddy…?” 

Yoshi raised a brow, “No, Yuri. It’s me, Yoshinori.”

“Fwah… what a daddy…”

“What? I’m not old at all! Did you hit your head or something?” He asked, scanning the top of her head for any injuries. 

“Hey, Yoshi!” 

The scoutmaster turned to his name, seeing Aiden walk up to him. 

“I just finished preparing the grill! We can relax and take a swim now! Oh…! Is Yuri having an episode again?” He looked down at Yuri, who turned to him at the sound of his voice. 

“KYAAAAAAA!!! What have I done to deserve all these gifts from heaven?! It's as if an ancient statue has come to life! Aiden, you are a masterpiece! A true work of art!!!”

Aiden chuckled, puffing out his chest a bit proudly, “Thanks, Yuri! I’m wearing my favorite swimsuit after all!” 

His swimsuit was much like Yoichi and Taiga’s. Rather thin and tight to his body. It had a white base with a few green stripes, and he was wearing a small necklace to match it. 

“Flex your muscles for me, Aiden~” Yuri cooed, her hands pressed to her cheeks. 

Aiden chuckled, lifting up his arm and flexing his bicep, “Like this?” 

Yuri screeched at the top of her lungs, making a series of incomprehensible noises when Aiden granted her request. Yoshi stepped up towards Aiden, pushing his arm down, “You’re not making the situation any better, Aiden! Could you help me out here?”

Aiden pouted, “Aww, do I have to? She’ll calm down eventually!”

“But-“

“No buts! Let’s just go swim already! I can’t wait any longer! Come with me!” He shook his head, stepped to the right to wrap his arm around Yoshi’s. 

Yuri made some kind of choked dolphin noise, “Yoshinori, GO! ‘COME’ WITH AIDEN ALREADY!!!”

Yoshi tried to step back, but Aiden’s grip was firm. The he had his chest pressed against Yoshi’s bicep, making the blonde man blush darkly, “A-Ah! A-Aiden, you’re t-too close!!”

He attempted to push back, but when he placed his hand on Aiden’s chest to move him back, Aiden blushed darkly. 

Yuri was enjoying the awkward encounter, squealing loudly, “KYAAAA!!! Where are your hands going, Daddy Yoshi?!”

“What’s all this ruckus about?” 

Before anyone could say anything more, Goro walked over to them hurriedly at hearing his daughter screaming. 

Yuri whirled around and her episode was brought to a screeching halt. Her blushed face and glazed eyes died and her posture corrected, “Daddy! I mean… literally!”

Yoshi gasped, seizing Aiden’s hands and peeling them off his arm, “Ah, there’s nothing to worry about here, sir! Yuri is just playing around with the campers!”

Yoichi squawked, “Playing!? She was straight up  _ hara- _ MNGH!”

Natsumi grimaced and dashed up behind Yoichi, throwing his hand around the violette’s head to cover his mouth and stifle him. 

“Ah, Ms. Yuri was just telling us some harmless jokes, sir!” He lied, smiling as brightly as he could. 

It seemed to work, for Goro only gave him a nod, “I see. Is everything going okay so far, Yoshinori?”

No response. 

“The tents are all set up, right? Lunch needs to be prepared soon as well.”

No answer. 

Goro furrowed his brows angrily, “What? Why have you all gone quiet?”

Aiden broke the silence, and in the worst way possible. 

“DAYUM! Didn’t know gramps here had such a huge packa-“

_ “AIDEN! SHHHH!” _

Before Aiden could finish, Yoshi elbowed him in the side roughly, making the man cough and sputter. 

Luckily, Yuri didn’t notice the comment towards her father, and only seemed to be happy to see him, “Aww~ you’re wearing the swimsuit I got for you, Dad!” 

Goro’s suit was… surprising, to say the least. It was much like Aiden’s, small and black in color. He wore a white and grey flowered shirt over his shoulders and had a rainbow follower garland around his neck, which the boys figured to be from Yuri. 

Goro seemed embarrassed by his daughter’s praise, coughing into his hand. 

Yuri smiled, tilting her head at the sight of the garland, “Oh! And isn’t that the flower garland Yoshi made for me?”

Yoshi didn’t notice it, gasping in fright when he saw the garland around his bosses neck, “Y-Yuri! Y-You made your dad wear that?!”

Goro’s jaw dropped, and he lifted the garland a bit, “Th-This was made by Yoshi?! I thought you said  _ you _ made this for me!”

Yuri sniggered, reaching up and taking Goro’s hand off the necklace, “Ah, ah, ah, Dad! Don’t take it off, that would be mean to Yoshi!”

The scoutmaster in question sighed heavily, smiling with exasperation, “You’re totally having fun, aren’t you, Yuri?” 

The pinkette stuck out her tongue. 

Aiden chuckled at the exchange, focusing his attention back onto Goro, “What’s with the grumpy face though, Gramps? You’ll get more wrinkles if you get angry!”

Goro snarled, “WHAT?! NO! And stop calling me Gramps, you… you… UGH!”

Yoshi took it upon himself to step in-between the two, smiling up at his manager, “It’s good to see you having fun with us for a change, sir.”

“Does it look like I’m having fun?! I’m being called names by this juvenile!” The man snapped, pointing at Aiden angrily. Yoshi sighed, nodding in agreement. 

“He’s right, Aiden… maybe you should stop calling him Gramps. Sir Goro isn’t that old anyway!”

The helper sighed, kicking at the sand dejectedly, “Alright, fine… but I have to say; Gramps here has a rocking bod too! No doubt he’s got the biggest ‘everything’ around here!” He tried to change the subject by pointing out Goro’s impressive build, flashing a bright smile. 

Yoshi went suspiciously quiet. 

“You still called me Gramps.” Goro narrowed his eyes at Aiden, who turned away whistling. 

Yoshi snapped out of his daze, letting out a long sigh and running a hand through his hair. He turned back to the scouts, clearing his throat a little awkwardly. 

“A-Anyway! Let’s make the most of our time and enjoy this vacation. Since everything is all set, why don’t we all go take a dip?”

Aiden threw his arms up, “That’s what I’ve been saying!”

Yuri clapped her hands happily, fixing the sleeve of her full body swimsuit, “Everyone’s dismissed then! Have fun, buddies~!”

At their scoutmasters word, the scouts all cheered loudly and dispersed like mice, most of them racing into the water. 

“WOOHOO! Finally! Let’s go!!!” Hiro jumped up happily, tearing across the sand and towards the ocean with Yoichi hot on his heels. Natsumi and Hunter followed them quickly, with the tall scout suddenly lifting Hunter up off the ground and onto his shoulders. Keitaro jumped up, taking Taiga by the hand and pulling him towards the sea. 

* * *

“Take that, Keitaro!” 

Keitaro squealed when a jet of water pelted him in the face, moving his arm up quickly to shield himself. 

The group had finally gotten into the water after their scoutmaster’s spiel. Keitaro and Hiro were currently in some kind of water war, trying to splash the other with as much water as they could. Natsumi and Hunter were walking around the ocean, observing the corals and small schools of fish at their feet. Taiga was sitting in the shallow ends of the water, relaxing in the waves while watching his cabin-mates play. And Yoichi was nowhere to be found. 

“Hey, no fair! Where did you get that water gun?!” He cried, holding up his arms to prepare himself for any more attacks. Hiro grinned savagely, cocking the water gun. 

“I borrowed it from Bro-Aiden! Hehe~!” He pointed the gun at Keitaro again, making the brunette jump around frantically to try and avoid any more blasts of water. 

Natsumi waded over to them, chuckling at the scene before him. He had a firm hold on Hunter, who was riding on his shoulders. 

“Natsumi… please don’t drop me, alright? I really can’t swim…” He murmured, clutching onto Natsumi’s head gently. The tall scout smiled, patting Hunter’s thighs reassuringly, “Don’t worry, I got you! The water isn’t really that deep anyway. And besides, you have around here, so there’s nothing to be afraid of!”

Hiro grinned, “Yeah… and now you’re an easy target for my  _ water gun _ !” He whirled around and pointed the toy right at Hunter, who lifted his arms in a panic, making Natsumi stumble, “Wh-What?! Hiro! No!”

Luckily for him, Hiro only smiled and lowered his weapon, “Haha! I’m just messing with you, Hunter!”

Keitaro chuckled, looking around the surface of the water. When he looked at Taiga, he gave the redhead an ecstatic wave. Taiga only chuckled and waved back, a brow cocked with amusement. 

When Keitaro turned to face Natsumi and Hunter, he noticed that they were short a member. 

“By the way, where’s Yoichi? I haven’t seen him around…” He asked, his chest tightening a bit with worry. 

Hiro blew a raspberry, “Who cares about that, Keitaro? It’s much better without him around anyway!”

_ “Did somebody say my name?!” _

It was like summoning a spirit by speaking it’s name. 

“WOOHOOOO!!!”

The moment Hiro made his rebuke, Yoichi appeared at the top end of the rocks. He took a running start and sailed off the stone, letting out a thunderous battle cry while holding a beach ball above his head. 

Hiro had no time to react before Yoichi tucked in his legs and cannonballed right next to him, soaking the boy completely. His weight caused the water to splash everywhere, even hitting Natsumi, Hunter, and Taiga off on the shore. 

“Wah! Yoichi! You got me all wet!” Hunter cried, his thin sweater now sticking uncomfortably to his skin. Yoichi only rolled his eyes at the complaint, “We’re on a beach! What did you expect!?”

Yoichi waded over to them, smirking savagely at the two. While Hunter was trying to dry himself off a bit, Natsumi began squirming when Yoichi took a running start at him and tried to pull his jammers down. 

“H-Hey, Yoichi! Stop pulling down my pants!” Natsumi had to take a hand off of Hunter to hold his swimsuit up, trying to swat the hyper-active scout away with his leg. 

Hiro growled, tossing his water gun onto the sand to walk over to them. He grabbed Yoichi’s shoulders, trying to pull him off of Natsumi, “Hey, you stupid Wolfboy! Can’t you go make trouble somewhere else?!”

Yoichi said nothing. He lifted his arm, and threw it onto the water’s surface, kicking the water up and into Hiro’s face. 

The two stared at each for a few moments. 

“That’s my answer, Torch-head!”

Natsumi sighed, “He’s being a troublemaker like always…”

Yoichi snickered, jumping over and snatching Natsumi’s goggles off his head. The tall scout hurriedly put Hunter down, setting him gently into the water to chase after Yoichi, “H-Hey! My goggles! Give them back!” 

“You snooze you lose, Mr. Perfect!”

Natsumi huffed, “Yoichi! Your behavior is very inappropriate! You’re being so immature!”

Yoichi only rolled his eyes, swinging the goggles around on his finger, “Oh, come on! Loosen up a little would you? I’m just trying to have fun!”

He sighed in response, “A-Alright, but could you please give back my goggles?”

“You want them so much~?” Yoichi pulled on the strap and aimed upwards, “ _ Then go fetch!”  _

He released the goggles strap like a slingshot, propelling the item into the air and far into the ocean. 

“Yoichi! That’s mean! You threw them so far away. How are we going to get them now?” Hunter walked over to Yoichi, gently pulling on his arm. He only rolled his eyes once more, “Oh, quit your whining, Twinkerbell!”

Natsumi sighed in defeat, running a hand through his hair, “Don’t worry, Hunter. I’ll just go get them myself.”

He quickly dove into the water, disappearing under its surface as he went to retrieve his goggles. He quickly picked up speed and raced through the water, making Keitaro’s jaw drop. 

“Whoa! I almost forgot how good Natsumi is at swimming!”

“Yeah, he doesn’t even have his goggles on!” Hunter added, watching in awe as Natsumi’s hand popped up and seized the goggles. It wasn’t even a minute before Natsumi swam back towards them, his goggles now once again firmly on his head. 

He stood up in the shallow water, panting heavily at the surprise workout he’d received. 

Keitaro was jumping up and down in the water, clapping his hands feverently, “Wow! Natsumi you’re so cool! It always amazes me to see you swim! You’re like a pro!”

Natsumi blushed darkly at the praise, rubbing his neck sheepishly. 

Yoichi pursed his lips, “Hmph! More like a sissy mermaid! He’s not that cool.”

Keitaro gently slapped Yoichi’s arm. 

Hiro sighed at Yoichi’s constant insults, pinching the bridge of his nose. When he opened his eyes and looked towards the shore, he saw Taiga laying in the sand, half in the water. 

“Oh, Taiga! Aren’t you gonna come in?” He called out, waving his hand despite Taiga being unable to see him. 

Taiga lifted his arm and waved him off, “I’m good. Wanna sunbathe for a bit.”

“What’s a sunbathe?” Yoichi asked, looking down at Hunter. 

“Sunbathing is when you lay down on a sunny day to bask in sunlight. It helps provide a lot of vitamin D and can give you a decent tan if you use the right moisturizer. TAIGA! Did you put on some sunblock?!” 

Taiga held a thumbs up. 

“Why would you come to the beach and just… roast in the sun? That makes no sense!” Yoichi threw his arms out, staring at the redhead with confusion. 

Keitaro smiled, “Well, the sun’s really warm, so it’s actually really comfortable and an easy way to fall asleep.”

“Yeah, but don’t you come to swim to… get…  _ away _ from the heat?” 

Taiga sighed from his spot, “Why don’t you stop critiquing me and come try it for yourself?” 

“No thanks, I’m not boring.”

Taiga sighed heavily. 

“Come on, Yoichi, let Taiga be. Let’s not force him into the water alright?” Keitaro reached out and placed a hand on Yoichi’s shoulder, smiling sweetly. 

While the two went back and forth over the purpose of laying in the sun, Taiga rolled his head up to look behind him at the forest-line. A mixture of regular and palm trees decorated the edge of the beach, the leaves all swaying in the gentle breeze.

He smiled at the sight, the beach always bringing a sense of calm to him. He let his eyes wander to the left, seeing a pile of bushes with something, round protruding from them. 

He narrowed his eyes. He rolled onto his stomach to get a better look. 

Then smiled. 

He quickly stood up, dusting the sand off of his legs and back and jogging away. 

Hiro looked up and watched him leave, crossing his arms angrily and turning to Yoichi, “Look at that, Wolfboy! You chased him away!” 

The five all turned to see Taiga gone, and Yoichi huffed in response, “Hey! It wasn’t me! I didn’t tell him to leave!” 

As Hiro and Yoichi fell into an argument, Keitaro looked around the beach with worry, lacing his fingers together, “Where did he go?”

“Was he upset-oh, wait! There he is!” Natsumi pointed back to the sand when he saw Taiga running back holding something in his hands. 

“Hey, Taiga! What’s that?” Hunter cried out, seeing the scout look up at him and smirk. 

He lifted his arms, and flashed a large watermelon. 

“I found a couple of watermelons in the bushes nearby!” 

Hiro smiled, clapping his hands happily, “Oh, yay! We can totally bust those open and have a snack!” 

Taiga snickered, placing the watermelon at his feet. He stood back up and held up a white cloth and bat, “Where’s the fun in that if we don’t break it open the  _ fun _ way~?” 

Hiro and Yoichi whooped with delight, rushing out of the water. 

“Hell yeah! I’ve always wanted to play that game!” Yoichi shouted, shaking the water off his legs when he got out of the ocean. Hiro followed suit, the rest of the cabin right behind them. 

Hunter and Natsumi both exchanged confused glances, turning to Keitaro, “What’s he talking about?” 

“Watermelon smashing!” 

“W-We’re gonna smash it?” Natsumi asked, the three finally stepping out of the water. 

Keitaro smiled, “Yep! It’s a game! We draw straws to see who gets to break it. The one breaking the watermelon gets blind folded and spun around till they’re super dizzy! Then, they have to listen to the other players to guide them to the watermelon and smash it open!”

“Doesn’t sound kinda… dangerous?” Natsumi asked, watching Taiga place the watermelon ona wide, open space in the sand. 

Keitaro shrugged, “I guess it can get a little if you don’t know what you’re doing. But, I’ve played this game before! All we need to do is clear the ground of any large debris, make sure we’re a good distance from the water, and have the other players steer clear of the one with the bat.”

Hunter sighed, “I hope it's not me that gets picked… I tend to fall over a lot when I get dizzy…”

Yoichi rolled his eyes, “Don’t be a wuss, Twinkerbell! It’s not like you’re out to hit some _ one _ !” 

Taiga sighed, “Alright, alright! Let’s stop going at each other’s throats for two seconds! Does anyone have any paper or something we can use as make-shift straws?”

Hunter nodded, quickly dashing over to his bags to pull out a sketchbook and pen.

“We can use this!” 

Taiga grinned, taking the sketchbook and writing down their names on the page. When he was done, he tore the page u into six strips, folding each over and cupping his hands. 

“Okay, who gets their name pulled gets to smash it, no complaints! You’ll be blindfolded and spun around for fifteen seconds. And try not to hit anyone, got it?” 

They all nodded. 

Taiga began to toss the papers up and down, shaking them around to mix them up. After ten seconds, he stopped his hands and held them out to Natsumi. 

“Alright, pick one!” 

“Wha-me?” 

Taiga nodded, “It doesn’t matter who draws the piece of paper, you’re just the closest one to me. Go on!” 

Natsumi nodded, reaching down to gingerly pick up one of the folded papers. 

“Please be me, please be me!” Yoichi clapped his hands together in prayer, jumping up and down excitedly. 

Natsumi took in a deep breath, unfolding the paper slowly. He stared at it for a few seconds. 

“Keitaro!” 

Yoichi slumped over sadly, and Keitaro smiled. 

“Hey, there should be other fruit around here, we could play again later!” He gave Yoichi a pat on the back, smiling reassuringly. 

Taiga smirked, whipping out the cloth and snapping it, “Alright, let’s do it!” 

Before Keitaro could react, Taiga swerved behind him and threw the cloth strip around his eyes, pulling it tightly around his head. Keitaro yelped, grabbing the sides of his head, “A-Ah! Taiga, t-too tight!” 

“What good will it do ya if it slips and falls off?” He retorted, tying the cloth into a tight knot and eradicating Keitaro’s sight. 

“Alright, who’s gonna spin him?” 

“We’ll do it!” Hiro cheered, pounding Yoichi in the arm who smirked in return, cracking his knuckles. 

_ I’m in danger _ . 

“B-Be gentle please-AHAH!!”

Keitaro cried out when two sets of hands seized either arm and began spinning him in circles mercilessly. 

“B-Be careful guys! D-Don’t get him sick!” Natsumi cried, his hands coming to his face with worry. Hunter had laid out a blanket, whispering to himself that Keitaro would need it after their game. 

Taiga silently counted in his head as Yoichi and Hiro spun him, taping his foot with each count. 

“Thirteen… fourteen… FIFTEEN! Let him go!” 

The two stepped back, Keitaro still spinning for a few seconds to try and regain some semblance of balance. 

“Ohhh… my tummy hurts…” He whined, propping himself on his knees. Taiga stepped over and patted his back, placing the bat in his hand. 

“You can wash away that feeling with the game!” He proclaimed, slapping Keitaro’s back to push him forward. 

Keitaro gripped the bat tightly, stumbling around to get his bearings. After a few seconds, he held up the stick and shook his head. 

“Okay, where am I going?” 

The five snorted when Keitaro held up the weapon proudly, facing the wrong direction. 

“Why are you guys laughing, help me!” 

“Hahaha, s-sorry… t-turn around first!” Hiro chuckled, trying to stifle his laughter. 

Keitaro slowly turned around, feeling his head spin. The lack of sight made his dizziness linger, but that was the point of the game. The last time he did this was with his sister, and she spun him around for a whole minute. 

Safe to say he’d emptied his lunch into a nearby bush pretty quickly. 

“Okay, go forward a bit!” 

Keitaro took a tentative step forward, feeling the sand for any obstacles. He took a few more steps before his confidence dropped, and he waited. 

“O-Okay… and now?”

“Keep going forward a bit more…”

He took another few steps forward, not remembering being this far away from the watermelon. 

“Okay, now go a little bit to your left!” Taiga cried, noticing Keitaro beginning to drift.

Keitaro took a step right. 

“Your  _ other _ left!” 

“I don’t have another left!” 

“Then learn the difference!”

Keitaro stumbled back to the left, nearly losing his balance as he went. He used the bat to stop himself from falling, gasping in relief. 

“Oh goodness!”

“You good?” 

“Y-Yeah!”

“Alright, you’ll wanna go a little bit right, then forward!” 

Keitaro stumbled around as the boys all shouted instructions, using the bat as a blind cane. 

“Just a little bit further!”

He held out the bat, trying to feel for the watermelon. He took another few steps, before the bat bumped into something. 

“You got it!”

The five cheered when Keitaro’s bat hit the watermelon. The brunette smiled, lifting the bat over his shoulder and taking a firm stance. 

“Where am I aiming?!” 

“Turn your shoulders a bit to the left!” 

Keitaro did as he was told, slightly adjusting his position. He did this a few more times, licking his lips when they went dry. 

“Okay, try it!” 

Keitaro tightened his shoulders, lifting the bat over his head. 

He sucked in a breath and brought the bat down, his aim perfect. 

Only for the bat to  _ snap _ when he hit the fruit, propelling the broken piece right in-between his eyes. 

“OW!” 

Keitaro dropped the handle and fell backwards, clutching his face as he hissed in pain. 

“KEITARO!”

The five all scrambled towards him, Taiga skidding to a stop behind him to shakily remove the blindfold. 

“Keitaro! Are you okay!?” Natsumi cried, gently lifting his face. 

The boy said nothing, only groaning in pain while he rubbed his forehead. 

“That’s a  _ weak-ass _ bat! It didn’t even put a dent in that melon!” Yoichi cried, picking up the bat. He grabbed the handle and snapped it in half with no effort, his jaw dropping at how easy it broke. 

“Guess I should’ve gotten a stronger stick…” Taiga winced, looking over Keitaro’s shoulder. 

“Keitaro, take your hands away from your face for a second, let me see…” Hunter cooed, gently grabbing Keitaro’s wrists to pull his hands down. 

Luckily, nothing was bleeding. But the boy had a pretty decent bruise on his face. 

“Owwwwiee….” Keitaro winced when the light entered his eyes, trying to pull his hands back to his face. 

“Ohh, ohh… that’s gonna leave a mark…” Hiro leaned over Hunter and reached up to softly rub the wound, making Keitaro sigh. 

“Is there any buzzing in your ears, blurry vision?” Natsumi asked, immediately checking for any concussion symptoms. 

Keitaro shook his head. 

“Well, that’s good! Do you want some ice?” He asked, gently rubbing Keitaro’s forehead. 

He nodded with a whimper. 

Natsumi quickly stood up and raced away, hollering for Yoshi. 

“That was one hell of swing, though! You definitely would’ve cracked that thing!” Yoichi smiled, patting Keitaro on the shoulder. He smiled in return, feeling a bit bummed by the suddenly turn in events. 

“Sorry that I ruined the game…” He apologized, rubbing his head. 

Hiro shook his head, “Come on, Keitaro! There’s nothing you need to apologize for! You got hurt, that’s not your fault!” 

Taiga nodded in agreement. 

Keitaro sighed, looking up to see Natsumi jogging back, an ice pack in his hand. 

“Got an ice pack for you! Scoutmaster Yoshi says to sit down for at least thirty minutes too!” He explained, dropping to one knee. He placed a thin cloth over the pack and pressed it to Keitaro’s forehead gently, the boy sighing in relief as it soothed the pain. 

“Well, I don’t think we have any other bats, so I guess we’ll leave the watermelon alone,” Taiga gently pushed the melon away, making Hiro and Yoichi pout sadly. 

Keitaro sat up a bit, holding the ice pack to his face. He hated seeing his boys disappointed. He saw their dejection and furrowed his brows. 

Without a word, he crawled over to the watermelon, kneeling over it. 

“Keitaro, you need to sit down-“

“Just a second!”

Hunter tried to coax Keitaro towards the blanket, but he quickly shot him down. 

Keitaro hummed, rubbing the surface of the fruit. He found the spot where he’d hit with the bat, pressing on the spot a bit. When he was sure of the area, he lifted his arm and hovered his elbow over the weakened skin. 

“Ummm… Keitaro? What are you-“

Keitaro sucked in a breath, lifting his arm and swiftly throwing his elbow into the watermelon, cracking the fruit into pieces. 

Everyone’s jaw dropped. 

“There, now we can eat it~” Keitaro purred, turning around with a smile. 

He grabbed a piece and crawled over to the blanket, sitting down on the soft surface. He took a bite of the melon, sighing at the taste. 

No one else moved, still staring at the watermelon. 

“Wah… wait-wa-huh… WHAT!?” Taiga stammered, throwing his arms around wildly. 

Keitaro chuckled, “I just hit it in the same spot I hit it with the bat. It helped that the bat weakened it. I didn’t want you guys to be sad cause I got hurt and we couldn’t finish the game!” 

They all stared at him with bewilderment. 

Hiro shook his head, “Does… does that count as a  _ motherhen _ thing? If it does, that makes sense but… how did you…”

Keitaro said nothing, but continued to nibble on his slice of the watermelon. 

Hunter took a piece, moving back over to the blanket to settle himself behind Keitaro. When he saw Keitaro wince at his forehead wound, the blonde laid his legs out and patted his thighs. 

“Here, lay down for a bit.”

Keitaro blushed, looking down at Hunter’s plump tights, his throat going tight. 

Not wanting to be rude, he nodded and slowly laid down, resting his head in Hunter’s lap. 

The others all grabbed a piece of the now busted watermelon, still reeling from Keitaro’s display. 

“Holy shit… that was awesome!” Yoichi cried, leaning over Keitaro’s head to smile at him. The brunette smiled back, setting his down to let the ice pack rest on his head naturally. 

“Hehe… thanks. I didn’t want you guys to be disappointed because of me,” he replied, sighing when Hunter began to run his slim fingers through his hair. 

“Still, you didn’t have to become some kind of ninja to bust it open. Where did you  _ learn _ that?” Taiga asked, taking a bite of his piece. 

Keitaro smiled, “Come on boys, I gotta have  _ some  _ secrets now.” 

“Oh come on!” 

“Pleeeease!?” 

“You can’t just do that and… NOT tell us how!” 

“I am invoking my right to remain silent, officers.”

Keitaro giggled at their protests, taking another bite of his watermelon. 

After a few minutes, the boys gave up trying to interrogate him, the scout proving to be extremely tight-lipped when he wanted to be. 

Keitaro sighed happily, finishing off his piece of the fruit and placing the rim off to the side, slightly adjusting the ice pack on his head. 

“Are you feeling okay, Keitaro?” Hiro asked, shifting over to observe his wound. The red mark had mostly disappeared, with a dark bruise replacing it. 

“Yeah, I have a bit of a headache now, but that’s to be expected…” He replied, rubbing the sore spot on his head. 

“Why don’t we take it easy for the rest of the day? Or at least until after lunch to give Keitaro some time to rest?” Natsumi suggested, sitting down behind Hunter. 

Keitaro looked at the ground, his brows furrowing, “You guys can go have fun. You don’t have to wait for me…”

Hunter shook his head, gently running his fingers through Keitaro’s hair, “It wouldn’t be any fun without you! We’re okay with waiting.”

When everyone nodded in agreement, Keitaro blushed darkly, lifting his hands to cover his face with embarrassment. 

“Hey, guys!” 

The six looked up to see Aiden waving at them. He was walking towards them while holding a few plates of food. 

“Hey, lunch has been ready for a while now. Everyone else has already started eating!”

Hiro jumped up, jogging over to Aiden to meet him halfway, “Oh! Perfect timing! What’s on the menu for today, Bro-Aiden?”

Aiden lowered the plates, showing off what he’d made, “We got grilled fish and some fresh vegetables!”

Hunter’s eyes widened, “Wow… that sounds tasty…”

Keitaro smiled, sitting up slightly with Hunter’s help. Yoichi didn’t seem as thrilled at the options, sticking out his tongue, “What do you mean, wow?! Buttcheeks, are you seriously serving us grass?!”

Aiden raised a brow, “Did you just call me Buttcheeks?”

“Duh!? Who else could it be? You’re the only one running around the camp wearing just an apron!” He explained, making Aiden chuckle in agreement. 

Natsumi sighed, “D-Don’t mind Yoichi, Sir Aiden… he always gives nicknames to everyone.”

“Hahaha, it’s alright,” Aiden waved him off, moving around to hand each scout their respective plates. 

“And anyway, this isn’t grass, you wild animal! Bro-Aiden worked hard to cook this meal! You haven’t even tasted it!” Hiro snipped, sticking his nose up.

Aiden chuckled, handing a plate to Ketiaro, “Sorry, guys. Yoshi insisted that I serve you guys something healthy for this trip. Don’t worry, thought! I did my best to make it special!”

Hiro held up a hand, shaking his head, “Hmph! Don’t listen to this wild dog, Bro-Aiden! He obviously doesn’t have any appreciation for good food since all he does is eat scraps like a wild animal!”

“Take the back, Torch-head!” Yoichi jumped onto his hands and knees, snarling at Hiro. 

Keitaro sighed, placing his ice pack down and scooting in-between the two. He gestured for Hiro to stand down while he turned to Yoichi, smiling sweetly. 

“Maybe you can try having one bite, Yoichi?” 

Yoichi only continued to growl at Hiro. 

Natsumi looked ready to step in, but Keitaro motioned for him not to. He smirked, moving forward to nuzzle his cheek against Yoichi’s, taking the large scout completely off-guard. 

“Come on, Yoichi, it won’t be that bad, I promise~” He cooed, smiling when he felt Yoichi’s cheeks heat up. 

The scout jumped back, turning around to hide his flushed face with a huff, “F-Fine! I’ll just eat the fish, I guess! You can have my share of grass. No way you’re making me eat something that gross!”

Aiden chuckled, handing Yoichi a plate with just fish, predicting beforehand that’s the only thing he’d eat, “That’s right! Full yourselves up first! We still have planets of time to enjoy this place!”

He handed off the plates and smiled once more before leaving with a wave. 

Keitaro picked up the fork, taking a bite of the fish with a sigh. 

“I’m surprised we all have room for lunch, since we had some watermelon already.” Natsumi picked up a piece of his vegetables, taking a bite. 

“Well, watermelons are pretty lite in small quantities, and the one we had was a bit on the smaller side,” Hunter theorized, receiving a positive nod from Keitaro. 

“Yeah, all I know is that I’m pretty hungry from the swim. And the game. My stomach’s settled down from all that dizziness I had at least.”

“Sorry I didn’t get a stronger bat…” Taiga murmured, sinking into his spot shamefully. 

Keitaro shook his head, leaning back to rest himself against the redhead, “Don’t worry about it, Taiga. It’s not the worst thing I’ve gone through.”

“I’m both extremely curious, and extremely scared to ask what that means.”

“Hehehe…”

Yoichi laid down next to them, chewing on his fish, “I still wanna know how you busted that watermelon open with just your fucking elbow.”

Keitaro chuckled, “It’s easy. It’s just distributing your weight properly on a weakened point. Since it already got it, the skin and surrounding flesh below was weak. All I had to do was throw another hit on that same point with most of my body weight for it to split like that!” 

“Okay… but who taught you that?” Taiga asked. 

Keitaro shook his head, “Sorry boys, but that’s classified!” 

He frowned. 

“I thought you were supposed to break watermelons with your thighs or something… like isn’t that a thing?” Yoichi asked, rolling onto his stomach. 

Keitaro rubbed the back of his neck, “W-Well, yeah. Since the thighs are connected to your torso, they’re one of the stronger points of the body.”

“Can…  _ can _ you bust a watermelon with your thighs?” Yoichi asked, sitting up slightly. 

The whole group went  _ eerily _ silent, all staring at Keitaro with bated breath. 

The brunette blushed, rubbing his arm, “I-I’d be lying if I said I… h-haven’t done that before…”

“ _ Really!? _ ” Hiro all but screeched, scarfing down the rest of his food to toss his plate aside. 

“U-Uhmm… yeah?” 

Taiga placed his plate down, silently standing up and walking away, his eyes wide. It was a few minutes before he returned, holding another fruit. 

He dropped it in Keitaro’s lap. 

“Taiga? What’s thi-“

“Do it. Please. I’m  _ begging _ you!” Taiga sat down in front of him, his hands in his lap as he leaned forward. 

Keitaro gaped, staring down at the fruit in his lap. He slowly lifted it, feeling the weight a bit. 

“Hmmm…” He pursed his lips in thought, feeling around the skin of the fruit. 

It was a bit riper than the previous melon, meaning it’d be easier to crush. 

He wanted to say no, not wanting to showcase  _ too _ much strength. But when he looked to see them all stared at him with wide eyes, he felt his heart melt in defeat.

He tapped the sides of the melon a few times. 

He shifted his position, placing his feet down to lift his knees into the air. He took a few deep breaths…

Then dropped the watermelon, caught it in-between his legs…

And crushed it like a  _ grape _ . 

Watermelon juice erupted from the fruit, completely drenching Keitaro. Bits and pieces of the melon flung out and around them, sticking to his skin. 

He wiped his eyes, squirming a bit at the sticky juice now on him, but smiling nonetheless. 

“Hehe… sorry for the mess…”

He relaxed his legs, only for the remains of the fruit to drop onto the blanket, soaking his thighs and nethers. 

“Ahhh… I forgot how messy this got…” Keitaro mused, picking up a few of the larger pieces and tossing them aside. 

He finally looked up at his cabin-mates, only to wince when he saw them all staring at him with eyes blow wide and flushed faces. 

“Wh… what?” 

Yoichi snorted, clapping his hands together and holding them up to his face. He closed his eyes, as if praying. 

He then popped them open, staring at him with pursed lips. 

“That was… without a doubt… the  _ hottest  _ thing I’ve ever seen.”

The noise Keitaro made sounded like some poor mouse getting choked. 

“Wha-What!? What do you mean-!?” The brunette threw his arms around, his face erupting. 

Hiro smirked, cocking a brow, “I think he means what he means. That was incredible! S-Sexy even! Do you know how attractive it is to smash a watermelon like that!?”

Keitaro felt like he was going to pass out. 

“I-I didn’t mean it like that g-guys, come on!” 

Natsumi and Hunter couldn’t bring themselves to say anything, the two shyer scouts looking away with flushed faces, the scene replaying over and over in their heads. 

Taiga wasn’t shy though. He rose a brow, a half-smirk crawling on his face, “Come on, Keitaro. Don’t tell you  _ haven’t _ seen what the internet does to people who can do that?”

Hiro sighed, “Unfortunately, Keitaro doesn’t use the internet much, so he might not. But, to put it bluntly, people who can crush watermelons like that, are kinda famous.”

Yoichi smirked, sitting up to lean against Keitaro’s side, picking off a piece of the watermelon, “It’s the danger thing. Imagine… you’ve your head in-between someone’s legs, giving them a great time. But deep down, you know one wrong move, and they can pop your head like a goddamn  _ tomato can _ !” 

“Wh-Wha- I would never do that!!”

“Didn’t say you would, but it’s the thought that often excites people. Also…  _ this _ …”

Yoichi gestured up and down Keitaro’s body, drawing his attention to the copious amounts of watermelon juice and bits on him. 

Keitaro looked down at himself, a blush across his face, “Y-Yeah… but that’s to be expected… why do people like that part?”

“Are you really that dense, Keitaro?” Hiro asked, swinging his arms around Keitaro’s shoulders. 

He leaned in and whispered in his ear,  _ “A lot of times, people like to… well… lick it off-“ _

_ “ _ WHAT!?!” 

Keitaro shot up from his seat, sending bits of the watermelon everywhere. 

“IMGOINGTOWASHUPNOWKAYBYE!”

Keitaro sailed away at break-neck speed, dashing towards the ocean. A dark blush fell over his cheeks as he thought of what Hiro said. The sheer  _ thought _ of his boys doing… well…  _ that;  _ had aroused him to no end. 

When he reached the shore, he dove into the water, the watermelon juice floating up and off of him. 

He tucked his hands in-between his legs, trying to hide the erection he’d gotten almost instantaneously. 

_ Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck- _

He glanced back at his cabin-mates, seeing them all conversing amongst themselves while glancing back at him occasionally. 

He heaved a sigh, deciding to wait until his “problem” went down, instead of handling it, with them so close to him. 

Why was he having these thoughts? It was so inappropriate! Having dirty fantasies about one person was bad enough, but  _ FIVE!?  _ Especially with someone who’d only really become his friend within the last two days! What was WRONG with him!?

He stayed in the water for another thirty minutes, letting his mind wander away before the boys joined him again, their previous conversation dropped.

* * *

The day had passed quickly. A bit too quickly for their liking. After lunch, Keitaro and his cabin decided to swim some more after their previous conversation ended on an awkward note. They’d all apologized to him over and over, thinking they’d upset him. 

It wasn’t that, it was more like Keitaro was upset with himself. While he’d wanted to impress his boys, he wasn’t sure they’d appreciate him having dirty thoughts about them, especially ALL of them. 

The sun was setting over the horizon, the air growing colder by the minute. Many of the scouts had left the ocean and made their way back to the campsite, where the scoutmasters were conversing amongst each other. 

It wasn’t until a little after six, when the smell of burgers filled the air, that the whistle for assembly was blown. 

“Attention, campers!” 

At the sound of Yoshi’s voice, they all turned to face him. 

“We, your scoutmasters, have finished setting up all the tents for everyone’s lodging tonight! Each tent can fit up to five people! It’s up to all of you which tent to join into, alright?” 

_ “Five?” _ Keitaro whispered, looking back at the others. 

Hiro shrugged,  _ “I’m sure we can cram all of us in there. Might be a bit tight, but we’ve had that situation before.” _

Keitaro nodded, remembering waking up his first camping trip buried in a pile underneath his cabin-mates. If that happened again, after he’d been… well… fantasizing?

Oh boy…

“Hihi! I know you boys are extra stimulated from being half-naked all day! So try to keep it down if you’re gonna do a fiveso-“

“AND!”

_ Ms. Yuri you’re NOT HELPING!!! _

“I would like all of you to bring your belongings to your respective tents!” Yoshi was quick to interrupt Yuri, gesturing over to the tents. 

Aiden spoke up, “Dinner will be ready soon, as well! So, you guys better pick the tents quickly or else you’ll run out of food!”

Yoshi nodded, “That’s right! And don’t forget to change your clothes too! It’s going to be a little cold tonight! That will be all for now! I’ll see you at dinner time!”

Yoshi clapped his hands, and the scouts all dispersed, going to pick up their bags. 

“Alright! We can have whichever tent we want! I call dibs on the one next to the fire!” Hiro cried, picking up his bag and racing into said tent. 

Hunter giggled at Hiro’s enthusiasm, “That’s a great idea! Scoutmaster Yoshi said tonight will be a little chilly.”

Natsumi stood up, dusting off his legs, “Let’s start moving our stuff inside so we can go eat!” 

They all stood up, moving their bags into the tent. Like Yoshi had said, this tent seemed a bit on the small side. When Keitaro walked in, he tucked his bag off to the side, watching Natsumi lay out six pillows to try and pre-set their sleeping arrangements. 

Safe to say, it was gonna be cramped. 

Keitaro heaved a sigh, a lump swelling in his throat at the thought of being pressed so tightly together. He tried to repress the thought, slapping his face a little bit. 

“Keitaro? Are you okay?” 

Hunter noticed Keitaro’s shift in attitude, leaning on the brunette’s side. 

Keitaro nodded, smiling brightly at the blonde, “Y-Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just tired is all…”

Natsumi leaned forward, “Do you want to call it an early night, Keitaro? We can bring dinner to you if you’d like?”

Keitaro sighed, nodding a bit, “S-Sure… that would be nice…” 

The bluenette nodded, stepping out of the tent to go and retrieve his food. Keitaro heaved a sigh, laying down on his spot, his fingers laced across his chest. 

“Does this have anything to do with what happened earlier?” Hiro asked, sitting down next to him. 

Keitaro shook his head, giving Hiro a gentle smile, “No, it doesn’t.”

“Are you sure? We ran off earlier, and we’re afraid we may have offended you by how we all… uhh…  _ came onto you _ , like that…” Hiro twiddled his thumbs together nervously, looking down shamefully. 

“Hiro, I told you guys; it wasn’t your fault. It was my own embarrassment that got me all… well… riled up you could say. I also think it may have been getting hit in the head made me a wee loopy for a bit. I mean… I don’t think I’d willingly just go crushing fruit between my legs willy-nilly on any given day, don’t you think?”

Hiro nodded. 

“So don’t worry about it too much, okay? I just need to eat and get some sleep. I’ll be a hundred percent for tomorrow, I promise you!” He held a thumbs up, receiving smiles from the others in the tent. 

Natsumi walked back in, balancing six plates on his arms. He handed them off to each member, the six falling into casual conversation as they ate dinner. 

With the sun now below the horizon, and their bellies full, their first day at the beach could come to a satisfying close. After dinner, the six all laid down, a bit cramped together, but comfortable nonetheless. 

A few words of sweet dreams and good nights were whispered… and the camp fell silent.

* * *

_ … _

_ I’ve always been… shamefully proud of how deceptive I can be… when I want to be… _

_...Hiro was right… _

_ This has… EVERYTHING to do with what happened earlier!!! _

Keitaro stared at the tent’s ceiling silently, his eyes wide open. 

_ What time is it even!? It could be ten, eleven, midnight?!?! I don’t know! _

_ All I know is… I can’t sleep!!! _

Keitaro took deep, calming breaths, trying to take his mind off his current… predicament. 

_ I can’t keep my mind off of what they said earlier. That I looked… hot! Was that even real?! And the stares they gave me! Those were bedroom eyes if I’d ever seen them!!! _

_ Even TAIGA was looking at me like that!!! _

_ And… also… these tents were really only meant for five… because… _

He groaned. 

_ WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING!? _

Keitaro mentally screamed. 

Right now, after his boys had been asleep for maybe an hour or so, they went from being lined up single file in the tent… 

To once more, a giant pile, which he was now trapped underneath. 

Hiro on his left. Hunter on his right. Natsumi overhead… somehow…

Yoichi down below, entangled in his feet. 

And Taiga…

Was laying right on top of him. 

Gentle snores, beating hearts, and warm, tender skin surrounded him. 

And it was driving him batshit  _ crazy _ . 

He’d never felt so… what was the word… happy. 

Despite his own morales, he was right in the middle of pile of men, men whom he’d cared for and cherished. Who he found himself attracted to, both physically… and maybe even emotionally. 

And he was loving every goddamned minute of it. 

_ What do I do now? I can’t bring myself to sleep! Not when one of my deepest fantasies is playing out around me! _

He closed his eyes… took a few deep breaths… tried to count some sheep…

_ Hnghhh… my heart is racing out of nowhere! _

He sighed again. 

_ Calm down, Keitaro… you’re just not used to it… _

He opened his eyes. 

_ I mean… is this okay? To have these weird… thoughts and sensations about so many? I mean… I know polyamory is a thing. But… not everyone is into that. And, I don’t wanna seem like some kind of heartbreaker if I… well… start flirting with ALL of them!! _

He rolled his head to the side, glancing at each and every one of them. 

_ They all have such unique personalities. Different stories and hardships. And I’m just one guy…  _

_ One really… boring guy… _

His expression fell into sadness. 

_ What could I give them that they don’t already have?  _

Taiga suddenly tightened his grip around Keitaro’s torso, shaking. He looked down, holding back a squeak when Taiga buried his face into the crook of his neck. 

_ Oh goodness, calm down Keitaro, DON’T GET AROUSED NOW- _

_ “N-No…” _

A whimper. 

Keitaro lifted his head ever so gently , trying not to disturb Natsumi. Taiga turned against, his grip tightening even more. 

_ “Please… no… it’s not my fault…” _

Taiga’s face scrunched up, his teeth gritting. His movements and whines were making the others stir. Keitaro looked around, see his boys all tossing and turning at the disturbance. 

_ “I didn’t mean to… please…!” _

_ He’s having a nightmare!  _

Keitaro lifted his forearms, maneuvering around Hiro and Hunter a bit, who were locked onto his biceps. He gently placed his hands over Taiga’s back, rubbing his gently.

“Shh… it’s okay…”

_ “I’m sorry…” _

Taiga hiccuped, a tear rolling down his cheek, 

Keitaro’s eyes widened with shock and fear. Taiga was… crying!? What should he do?! If he woke him up, it might cause a ruckus. But he couldn’t just let him suffer like that! 

What should he-

His eyes widened. 

Keitaro took in a few deep breaths, resting his head back against Natsumi, curling his legs to draw Yoichi closer, rolling his shoulders to scoot Hiro and Hunter towards him, and gently painted Taiga’s back with his fingertips. 

He parted his lips…

And began to sing. 

_ “~Lay down your head… and I’ll sing you a lullaby~” _

His soft, gentle voice filled the quiet night air, making them all twitch in their sleep. 

_ “~Back to the years, of loo-li-lai-lay~” _

_ “~And I’ll sing you to sleep, and I’ll sing you… tomorrow~” _

Taiga sniffled, and his face softened. 

_ “~Bless you with love, for the road that you go~” _

He heard various sighs of happiness and relief. Hiro mumbled something in his sleep, sounding like his name, like he recognized his voice. 

Keitaro smiled, leaning over to gentle kiss him on the forehead, and continue his song. 

_ “~May you sail fair, to the far fields of fortune~” _

_ “~With diamonds and pearls… at your head and your feet~” _

He gently wiped Taiga’s face clean of any remaining tears. 

_ “~And may you need, never, to banish misfortune~ _

_ “~May you find kindness, in all that you meet~” _

“K… Keitaro…”

He smiled. 

_ “~May there always be angels, to watch over you~” _

_ “~To guide you each step of the way~” _

_ “~To guard you… and keep you… safe from all harm~” _

The grips they had on him got tighter, and he felt the smiles that broke in their sleep. It made his heart skip a beat, 

_ “~Loo-li-loo-li-lai-lay~” _

He drew his lullaby to an early close, sensing the calm that washed over them all. He looked down at Taiga, checking to see if his nightmare was continuing. 

He was instead, smiling, his fists clenching Keitaro’s shirt. His breath regulated, and his expression softened as the nightmare disappeared into nothing. 

Keitaro smiled, laying his head back, finally feeling the weight of sleep hang on his eyelids. 

He let out a quiet yawn. 

“Sleep well… my beautiful boys…”

After a rather interesting day, with funny and exciting turns…

He’d finally drifted off to sleep, surrounded by those he held dear. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG THIS TOOK FOREEEEEEVERRRRRRR
> 
> But it’s done!!! And I’m happy to present it!!!
> 
> I’m so excited to be getting to the beach scenes! Tensions are starting to build, and the summer fun ain’t gonna make it better!
> 
> But, before I go off on a tangent and start spoiling things for ya’ll, let’s talk about the major points of this chapter. 
> 
> One of the biggest, in my opinion, is Keitaro’s sister’s gotta name! I was gonna wait a bit more, but since she’s been talked about so much, I found it harder and harder to write her bits without calling her by name. So I thought, fuk it. 
> 
> Her name is Kida Nagame! Color scheme is Virdian Green and animal motif is Turtle!! That’s all you’ll get on her for now~
> 
> We get more glimpse of Keitaro’s story, with his repressed trauma surrounding his father. Hiro knows bits and pieces, but even he’s left in the dark about what happened. Safe to say, they won’t be finding out anytime soon. 
> 
> We also get another peek at Keitaro’s not-so-hidden-anymore strength. Not only can he break a watermelon with the right force, but he can crack it with his tights. Yep, he’s one of those people. Of course, the incident gets his boys all in a stir and flusters him. 
> 
> How, and more importantly, why he has this skill, is gonna remain a mystery for a long while. And why did I decided to have Keitaro get concussed by a stick? Why not? 
> 
> And for the ending, I decided to go a little more on the fluffy side. I’m all about setting the mood for sexual themes. Day 16 and 17 while hinge more on the sexual side as tensions rise, but tonight, Keitaro finds himself drawn to them in a more emotional way after sending the day with them. Poor boy can’t sleep XP (also go listen to Sleepsong by Secret Garden you won’t regret it~) When Taiga starts to have another nightmare, Keitaro takes a page out of his sisters book and decides to sing for his boys, without their nohow of course, since they’re asleep XD 
> 
> Well, that’s it for me today! If you wanna follow updates on Sleepsong (and other CB shenanigans) follow me on Twitter @TiraminaFW! Or follow the #cbsleepsong tag, that too!
> 
> NEXT TIME: 
> 
> The second day at the beach arrives! Yoshi decides to hold another bag earning event for the scouts with beach-themed activities. It’s in this moment, that he decides to check on Taiga’s progress with Cabin One, and unfortunately, misunderstands the situation. He gives Taiga and Keitaro specifically, a task for their badge, which only seems to anger Taiga. Will this event dial back the progress Taiga’s made, or open him up even more? 
> 
> STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!!!
> 
> Let’s Make the Greatest Memories! 
> 
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~

**Author's Note:**

> Omg  
> I'm fucking doin' it  
> Soooooo.... Camp Buddy has been a recent thing to come into my life in these trying times. And it has successfully reignited my writer's flame. So, to properly thank the series and it's creator, I have decided write another story to add to growing pile, this one with a guide!  
> So, Camp Buddy: Sleepsong is the story of, well Camp Buddy, but with a twist. Instead of having to choose one love-interest, these story deals with Keitaro having mixed feelings within himself when he can't choose. I like to call it Keitaro's Route. And like it said in the tags, it's just Keitaro picking up the five main boys and just, running away with them screaming because they're all too cute and too precious to be left behind and he's having NONE of that!  
> But back on a serious note, this is my first story delving into the poly-amorous topic. I do have future works that will have these theme, but this is the first one I'm publishing. Polyamory is quite the interesting topic, and something I can identity with personally, as I wouldn't mind having more and than consensual lover. So, I hope I can do my best to portray this properly, and contribute to the CB fandom, cause despite these being a BL visual novel, is such a wholesome series!!!  
> Anyway, enjoy the prologue, and listen to the song featured here! It's such a soothing piece, I love playing before I fall asleep.  
> Anyway, I hope you guys will enjoy this story. I want to get back into writing as much as I can, and will attempt, and I emphasize on ATTEMPT to publish chapters on a bi-weekly basis.  
> EMPHASIS ON ATTEMPT  
> I'm essential personnel so I'm still going to work, and it's been hell...  
> Anyway, I'm done rambling. I hope you enjoy Camp Buddy: Sleepsong! Let's make the Greatest Memories!  
> ~HUGS ALL AROUND~


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